Powerful solar flare left Earth without radio communication for 30 minutes

On May 1, an extremely powerful solar flare occurred on the Sun, which led to a large-scale radio blackout throughout the Pacific region. The flare peaked at 7:46 p.m. EDT (2346 GMT) and lasted 12 minutes. 

Flares on the Sun are a manifestation of magnetic energy that accumulates in its atmosphere and is then released in the form of intense bursts of electromagnetic radiation. They are divided by size into categories, the most powerful of which is X-class, followed by M-class, C-class, B-class and A-class. According to Spaceweatherlive.com, the flare on April 1 had a power of M9.53, which is slightly less than the X-class. The strength of the flare was measured by NASA’s GOES-16 satellite.

Read more – Universe Magazine: https://bit.ly/3JPdqeK