Posted on 02/26/2014 12:34:51 AM PST by tired&retired
X-FLARE! Long-lived sunspot AR1967 returned to the Earthside of the sun on Feb. 25th and promptly erupted, producing an X4.9-class solar flare. This is the strongest flare of the year so far and one of the strongest of the current solar cycle. A movie from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the explosion hurling a loop of hot plasma away from the blast site:
http://spaceweather.com/images2014/25feb14/redflare3_strip4.gif
The source of the eruption is long-lived sunspot AR1967, now beginning its third trip across the Earthside of the sun. This region was an active producer of flares during its previous transits, and it looks like the third time will be no different. By tradition, sunspots are renumbered each time they return, so AR1967 has been given a new name, AR1990. After today, that is what we will call it.
(Excerpt) Read more at spaceweather.com ...
Here is another story on this:
Sun Unleashes Monster Solar Flare, Biggest of 2014
http://www.space.com/24801-sun-unleashes-monster-solar-flare.html
The videos are beautiful
PING ,Solar flare.
Ugh, did they have to use eerie ambient for that?
That’s still a lot of gas. :D
News to me....
so the sunspot count of the current cycle is even lower....
heading for a Dalton Minimum as we speak.
Wild sun ping.
Thanks for the ping. We should be glad it wasn’t pointed at us.
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