Sun produces most significant solar flare activity in 24 years

Video: Some radio communications on earth have been knocked out from the radiation emitted

Kiran Moodley
Tuesday 28 October 2014 10:36 GMT
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The bright light in the lower right of the sun shows an X-class solar flare on Oct. 26, 2014, as captured by NASA's SDO.
The bright light in the lower right of the sun shows an X-class solar flare on Oct. 26, 2014, as captured by NASA's SDO. (NASA/SDO)

The sun has emitted several substantial solar flares in recent days, erupting from the largest active region seen on the star in 24 years years.

All of this solar flare activity was triggered from a massive sunspot in a region of the sun called AR12192 on October 19, with six substantial flares emitted since.

The flares have erupted from a sunspot almost 80,000 miles across.

While solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation, harmful radiation cannot pass through the Earth's atmosphere and affect people on the ground.

However, the last flare was classified as an X2-class flare, the third X-class flare in the last 48 hours. X-class flares are the most intense.

The radiation from the flares has already knocked out some radio communications on earth and the level of solar activity is likely to be high for the next few days as the sunspot continues to grow.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center has recorded several radio blackouts relating to activity on AR12192.

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