Sun Releases Strong X4.5 Flare | NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory

Sun Releases Strong X4.5 Flare | NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory

The Sun emitted a strong solar flare, peaking at 11:29 a.m. ET on Sept. 14, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory watches the Sun constantly and it captured an image of the event. Strong (G3) geomagnetic storms are likely to be experienced on Earth on September 16, 2024. In the United States, aurora may be visible as low in latitude as Pennsylvania and Oregon.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare—seen as the bright flash near the center of the image—on Sept. 14, 2024. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares. It is colorized in gold and red. 

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

This is classified as an X4.5 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

Image Description: A combination of multiple ultraviolet wavelengths shows the Sun with bright loops of material extending off of the surface. A bright flash erupts on the Sun's lower left, and a burst of material is thrown off of the Sun into space. 

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. 

NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

Image Credit: NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO)

Caption Credit: Sarah Frazier

Release Date: Sept. 16, 2024

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