NASA detected a strong solar flare yesterday morning

While solar flares can have a major impact on the global economy due to their negative influence on electronic devices and networks, both wired and wireless, it is interesting to mention that none of the top 10 such events ever recorded took place in the last five years (source). Yesterday, NASA recorded another solar flare worth mentioning, although its intensity was more than three times lower than that of the latest entry in the aforementioned top 50.

According to the data measured by the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory mission, the solar flare that occurred yesterday peaked at 7:08 a.m. ET and was classified as an X1.5 flare. The most intense solar flare ever recorded took place on November 4th, 2003, peaking above the X40 level and having a total duration of 37 minutes. Earlier this month, NASA recorded two other strong solar flares, of which the strongest was labeled X1.4.

On June 8th, an M-class solar flare was the cause of a strong radiation storm. As revealed by the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center, it caused a massive radio blackout in the northern polar area. To compare this with the flares mentioned earlier, one should keep in mind that its intensity was lower than X1.0 (M9.7, while M-class flares are 10 times less intense than their X-labeled counterparts).

Those who want to find out more about solar flares can do so by reading Whitley Strieber's Solar Flares: What You Need to Know: A Special from Tarcher/Penguin, which is only available in Kindle format for a mere $3.99.