14 DAY TRIAL // It seems that the sun is finally generating some activity. It's supposed to be at the peak of the 11-year activity cycle and we should be seeing all sorts of action on the surface of the sun.
So far though, it's been eerily quiet. But that may be changing, yesterday, a sizeable M-class flare was flung towards the Earth.
Now, a much larger X-class flare, the most energetic, was spotted. The flare erupted from a new sunspot rich area called Region 1882.
"This flare is classified as an X1.7 class flare. 'X-class' denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength," NASA explained.
"An X2 is twice as intense as an X1, an X3 is three times as intense, etc. In the past, X-class flares of this intensity have caused degradation or blackouts of radio communications for about an hour," it added.
The flare is quite large, compared to the one yesterday, but it is not aimed directly at Earth so it shouldn't be generating too many problems. The effects of the M class flare should be felt in the coming day, but only at the polar regions.