A massive solar flare triggered a solar storm which affected the Earth over the weekend, according to a report from Space.com. A solar flare erupted on the Sun’s surface on Thursday, releasing a wave of charged particles into space in the direction of the Earth. The wave of particles reached the planet on Saturday, and could lead to lingering radio and magnetic disturbances, and has already generated higher than usual auroral activity.
Solar flares are produced when lines of magnetic activity on the Sun become entangled, storing up high amounts of magnetic energy. These magnetically energetic regions can be seen on the Sun’s surface as sunspots. When the magnetic fields “snap,” they can fling large amounts of radiation and charged particles into space.
Normally, these eruptions, called coronal mass ejections (CMEs) occur in regions facing away from the Earth, but occasionally the Earth happens to be right in the way of an oncoming CME.
Read more: http://www.capitolcolumn.com/news/solar-storm-generates-higher-than-usual-auroral-activity/#ixzz20nf2M3AH
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