Massive solar flare spotted on New Year’s Eve, sparks warning for high-frequency radio users
A massive solar flare, the largest in years, was spotted on the sun on New Year’s Eve, sparking a warning to high-frequency radio users. In an update Sunday evening, NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) released an image of the flare, which appeared as a large, glowing spot on the sun.
The solar flare, categorized as an X5 event, peaked just before 5 p.m. ET on Sunday. Flares are categorized based on their strength, and the X-class flares can cause more noticeable impacts, like radiation storms that can impact satellites and give small radiation doses to airplane passengers flying near the poles.
While the flare was much smaller than the X45 flare, recorded in 2003, it was the strongest since September 2017. Those using high-frequency radio signals (like emergency managers) may notice a “temporary degradation or complete loss of signal on much of the sunlit side of Earth” as a result of the solar flare.
While a coronal mass ejection (CME) was detected in connection with Sunday’s solar flare, the chances of any of us seeing the aurora Monday night appear slim, according to the SWPC. The SWPC’s current forecast shows only a few states have a chance at catching the auroras Monday night.
Solar activity and CMEs are only expected to be more common in 2024 as the sun continues through Solar Cycle 25. Solar cycles are 11-year periods when the sun flips its magnetic poles, sparking space weather like flares and CMEs. However, there are resiliencies built into our electrical grids, flights, and communication systems to prevent or diminish any impact.
“Some people worry that a gigantic ‘killer solar flare’ could hurl enough energy to destroy Earth, but this is not actually possible,” NASA previously explained. Plus, solar cycles repeat every 11 years. That means anyone over the age of 11 has already lived through a solar maximum (and probably didn’t notice its occurrence).
An added bonus of the current solar cycle is the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, which will occur near cycle maximum, meaning a good show for skywatchers.