 "Solar storm")
A powerful solar flare originating from an active sunspot region called AR 3354 resulted in a brief radio blackout in the western side of the United States and the Pacific Ocean. This X1.0-class flare is ranked among the strongest ever observed from the Sun. It affected the Earth's upper atmosphere, causing interference with high-frequency radio signals in the region facing the Sun at that time, according to a report from Wion.
Despite the severity of the solar flare, the overall consequences on Earth were not as severe as they could have been. The flare subsided without any additional incidents, and astronomers did not detect a coronal mass ejection (CME), which is often associated with such events and can release streams of plasma into space, added the report.
This recent solar flare aligns with the ongoing solar cycle, indicating that we can expect more intense solar activity in the coming months as we approach the peak of the 11-year cycle. The Royal Observatory of Belgium reported a 21-year high in sunspot counts, with an average of 163 sunspots per day in June.
Solar activity follows a regular pattern with cycles of peaks and lows occurring every 11 years. These cycles, known as solar maximum and solar minimum, are driven by the Sun's magnetic field. Sunspots, temporary regions with strong magnetic fields, play a role in generating solar flares and CMEs. The greater the number of sunspots, the more frequent these bursts of energy occur.
This is currently the Solar Cycle 25, with the predicted solar maximum expected around July 2025. However, this cycle has witnessed higher activity than was initially expected by the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The official prediction of around 115 sunspots at the peak.
