The Superflare
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It has now been confirmed by the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration that the solar flare that emerged
from sunspot area 9393 on Monday at 5:57 EDT was
measured as X-22 on the 20 point solar flare gauge. This
makes it a tie for the largest ever recorded in the 25 years
the
list has been kept.
SOHO Satellite View
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The flare sent most of its energy away from earth, but a
substantial amount is still expected to reach the planet. The
leading edge of the storm passed earth at 11AM today, April
4, 2001.
Spaceweather.com is
reporting that intense auroras are likely, but should not reach
the intensity recorded March 31.
Sunspot 9393 is now rotating away from the earth, but a new
large sunspot area, 9415, is appearing. It does not seem to
be as large as the 9393 area at this time, but it may expand
over the next few days.
This has been a period of unusually intense solar activity. In
fact, it is probably the most intense such period ever
recorded. It is expected that the current solar maximum will
reach its greatest extent during the midsummer. Had the
megaflare recorded yesterday struck earth with full force,
there would have been extensive damage to satellites,
electrical power grids, and electronic devices on the surface.
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