Solar flare eruptions set to reach Earth

[Evil Eye]

Scientists around the world will be watching closely as three eruptions from the Sun reach the Earth over Thursday and Friday.



These coronal mass ejections will slam into the Earth's magnetic shield.



The waves of charged solar particles are the result of three solar flares directed at Earth in recent days, including the most powerful since 2006.



The biggest flares can disrupt technology, including power grids, communications systems and satellites.



The northern lights (Aurora Borealis) may also be visible further south than is normally the case - including from northern parts of the UK.



Our current view is that the effect of the solar flare is likely to reach Earth later today (Thursday GMT), possibly tomorrow morning, said Alan Thomson, head of geomagnetism at the British Geological Survey (BGS).



He told BBC News: In the scientific community, there's a feeling that it's not as intense as we first thought it might be. But it's possible still that it could be a large enough event for us to see the northern lights in the UK.



However, weather forecasts suggested cloudy conditions could mar views of any aurorae.

Technological impact



The US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) said that three coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were en route as the result of solar flares on the 13, 14 and 15 February (GMT).



The last of the three seems to be the fastest and may catch both of the forerunners about mid-to-late day tomorrow, February 17, read a statement from Noaa's Space Weather Prediction Center.

Aurorae



The flare recorded at 0156 GMT on 15 February was the strongest such event in four years, according to the US space agency (Nasa), which has been monitoring activity on the Sun. The event was classified as a so-called X-flare, the most intense type.



The source of all three events, sunspot 1158, has expanded rapidly in recent days.



Solar flares are caused by the sudden release of magnetic energy stored in the Sun's atmosphere.



Their effects can interfere with modern technology on Earth, such as electrical power grids, communications systems and satellites - including satellite navigation (or sat-nav) signals.



Although scientists are expecting most geomagnetic activity to occur on Thursday, Chinese state media has already reported some disruption to shortwave radio communications in the south of the country.

Video+more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12493980

 

[The Dragon Master]

Damn the sun [shakes fist] I'll get you back

 

[Evil Eye]

Damn the sun [shakes fist] I'll get you back

O.O

Don't put it out ok? I don't want to freeze.

 

[The Dragon Master]

Don't worry I wont

Tbh, I didn't understand anything in that article

I don't do physic's XD

 

[Evil Eye]

Tbh, I didn't understand anything in that article

I don't do physic's XD

Suns sends out extra radiation => we get pretty lights in the sky and tech stops working.

 

[The Dragon Master]

Ahhh, thank you EE

 

[Bryd0]

I heard this on the news earlier on and hopefully the lovely sights of the northern lights come to here in Scotland. If so, I'll be taking shots of them but I'm not if I have to stay up very late to see them