# Sun Erupts with X Class Solar Flare



## Kreij (Mar 5, 2012)

A major solar flare erupted from the sun late last night (March 4) sending an explosion of plasma and charged particles hurtling toward Earth.

The flare was an X1.1-class solar flare and exploded from the surface of the sun at 11:13 p.m. EST (0413 GMT March 5), according to the Space Weather Prediction Center operated by the National Weather Service.

X-class flares are the most powerful type of solar storm, with M-class eruptions falling within the mid-range, and C-class flares being the weakest.

The X-class flare unleashed a wave of plasma and charged particles, called a coronal mass ejection (CME), into space. Experts at the Space Weather Prediction Center said the CME will likely miss Earth, but they remain alert for minor geomagnetic storms beginning late Tuesday (March 6) and lasting through Wednesday (March 7).

"According to analysts at the Goddard Space Weather Lab, the CME will probably miss Earth, although it will hit Mercury and Venus." the website Spaceweather.com reported in an alert. "Even if this CME misses, high-latitude sky watchers should still be alert for auroras in the nights ahead."

Several spacecraft, including NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory and the Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), observed the extreme ultraviolet flash from the X-class flare.

source


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## cadaveca (Mar 5, 2012)

I was in the middle of watching "The Tunnel" when the GOES iphone app sent me a msg about this last night.

It's unbeleivable how quick they are to get updates out to the app suers, was within minutes of the "event".


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## W1zzard (Mar 5, 2012)

Kreij said:


> the CME will probably miss Earth



also, isnt X1.1 the lower end of the X scale? with higher number being stronger?

i'll be flying to san francisco at that time (nvidia briefing before anyone asks), this better not hit my plane


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## Kreij (Mar 5, 2012)

Dont' worry W1zz ... worst case is you mutate into some kind of flesh eating zombie (after your laptop explodes)


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## PopcornMachine (Mar 5, 2012)

Kreij said:


> Dont' worry W1zz ... worst case is you mutate into some kind of flesh eating zombie (after your laptop explodes)



Ok, that's the worst case.  Thanks for clearing that up.


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## cadaveca (Mar 5, 2012)

W1zzard said:


> also, isnt X1.1 the lower end of the X scale? with higher number being stronger?
> 
> i'll be flying to san francisco at that time (nvidia briefing before anyone asks), this better not hit my plane



Yeah, low-end X-Class. They aren't sure if it will be geo-effective:



> Further
> analysis of the CME will be necessary as imagery becomes available,
> however there appears to be a partial Earth-directed component.  A
> glancing blow is possible from this event.



http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/forecast.html



Might affect navigational/communication systems and such for about an hour:



> Potential Impacts: Area of impact consists of large portions of the sunlit side of Earth, strongest at the sub-solar point.
> Radio - Wide area blackout of HF (high frequency) radio communication for about an hour.



http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/alerts/alerts_timeline.html


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## Crap Daddy (Mar 5, 2012)

W1zzard said:


> i'll be flying to san francisco at that time (nvidia briefing before anyone asks), this better not hit my plane



Diablo 3 on Tegra 3?


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## W1zzard (Mar 5, 2012)

Crap Daddy said:


> Diablo 3 on Tegra 3?



kepler


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## dorsetknob (Mar 6, 2012)

just noticed this Tv Program showing tonight in the uk
Horizon: BBC 2 9pm UK Time
 Solar Storms - The Threat to Planet Earth
http://www.radiotimes.com/episode/pq5z2/horizon--horizon-solar-storms---the-threat-to-planet-earth

    Review by:
    David Butcher

“We are playing a game of Russian roulette with our Sun,” warns a scientist in this enlightening film about space weather. You wonder if he and others in the programme are perhaps hyping the risks of solar storms for the sake of their budgets, but no, the danger is real: when a solar flare erupts it does so with the power of a billion atom bombs (that’s right – a billion atom bombs), flinging a chunk of the Sun at us in a hail of magnetism, x-rays and energetic protons. That can knock out power grids and fry satellites, so forecasting space weather matters.

We meet the experts who do that, and we see some very cool experiments. But really, the best bits are just the trippy footage of the Sun’s churning plasma. You could watch it for hours. 

About this programme

Scientists predict this year will see a fit of violent activity on the sun which will propel billions of tonnes of superheated gas and pulses of energy towards Earth. In 1989 one of these solar storms, which has the power to close down modern technology, cut off the power to the Canadian city of Quebec. Horizon meets the weathermen as they try to predict what's coming and organisations like the National Grid as they prepare for the cosmic tempest.


Thought the people here might be interested as its topical for this thread

ps If you cant watch it live  there is always IPLAYER/ catchup tv and for those that cant access these services   im sure it will find its way to your pc/mac someway


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## The_Ish (Mar 11, 2012)

That's interesting. I recommend this BBC Horizon documentary to anyone who wants to know more. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01d99vb


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## cadaveca (Mar 11, 2012)

Personally....


BAH HUMBUG!!!






I am obsessed with weather stuff, which is why I pay attention to this stuff, but really, it's the bloody Sun. Nothing we do can prevent it from belching stuff all over us. Our current dependance on technology makes it an interesting subject, but I find there is a lot of fear-mongering going on.


The fact of the matter is that nuclear war is more likely than the Sun destroying modern society.


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## trickson (Mar 11, 2012)

Man I was wanting to see the northern lights but I guess here in Washington state you just are not far north enough!


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## Inceptor (Mar 12, 2012)

If a CME is strong enough, a severe geomagnetic storm can be seen in the northern US.

Spaceweather/

Go down to the bottom of the left-hand column, and it will show you the chances for Minor, Moderate, and Severe geomagnetic storms (Aurorae).

If it's not very strong, sometimes it only appears as a very faint 'flickering' across the sky, like an incredibly dim flickering flame.  If you have a dark sky to look at.


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## trickson (Mar 12, 2012)

<<Look over at avatar, Now listen to Carl say this..

Oh man I wish it would just explode and take us all out man.


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## cadaveca (Mar 12, 2012)

trickson said:


> Man I was wanting to see the northern lights but I guess here in Washington state you just are not far north enough!



This site is just what ya need:

http://helios.swpc.noaa.gov/ovation/


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