Posted on 05/10/2022 6:51:54 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Amplified aurora displays are possible if a coronal mass ejection of charged particles emerges from the "mixed-up" sunspot AR3006, which pointed its flaring blast toward Earth Tuesday (May 10) at 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT).
The flare was caught on camera by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory and spurred a radio emission alert by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), amid a reported shortwave radio blackout in the Atlantic Ocean region.
AR3006's polarity is the reverse of what scientists are expecting, which makes the sunspot "interesting and dangerous," SpaceWeather.com stated. (Sunspot polarity is governed by the current solar cycle.) "If AR3006 flares today, it will be geoeffective. The sunspot is directly facing Earth," the website added.
According to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, which monitors solar flares and other outbursts, a coronal mass ejection (CME) may follow today's flare. CMEs are massive outbursts of solar material burped out by the sun, and scientists can predict whether one will follow a flare based on the radio signature. As of about 12 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT), the agency said that a CME "may be likely," pending further observations.
Today's flare was classified as an X1.5-class event, making it on the weak side of the strongest category of flare. The sun has fired off several explosions of about the same strength in the past month, along with a bunch of moderate-sized flares. The sun's peak activity is expected to occur in 2025, but there are numerous sunspots on its surface right now.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
AR3006’s polarity is the reverse of what scientists are expecting, which makes the sunspot “interesting and dangerous,” SpaceWeather.com stated. (Sunspot polarity is governed by the current solar cycle.) “If AR3006 flares today, it will be geoeffective. The sunspot is directly facing Earth,” the website added.
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The current solar cycle is a very weak one. Perhaps that’s why this flare exhibits reverse polarity. The last solar cycle was also weak. I believe the last cycle was equatorial and this one is polar.
In predicting that this flare will affect earth I would ask whether earth helped cause this flare.
“Should I still buy green bananas tomorrow?”
Something I think of all the time...
A mixed up sunspot? It had a Joe Biden moment?
Ben Davidson from Spaceweathernews.com will have a full report at 6am if not earlier.
You should never buy green bananas.
I know! What a bother!
Biden should have prevented this.
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