Sun unleashes first X-flare of new Solar Cycle
Sunspot 1158 has unleashed the strongest solar flare in more than four years.
The eruption, which peaked at 0156 UT on Feb. 15th, registered X2 on the Richter scale of solar flares.
NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded an intense flash of extreme ultraviolet radiation.
X-flares are the strongest type of solar flare, and this is the first such eruption of new Solar Cycle 24. In addition to flashing Earth with UV radiation, the explosion also hurled a coronal mass ejection (CME) in our direction.
Geomagnetic storms are possible when the CME arrives 36 to 48 hours hence.
Source: Spaceweather.com
