Sun Unleashes X-Class Solar Flare. Our Star Be Workin’ This Year.
You have to hand it to the Sun this year. It’s been acting up like nobody’s business. Well, except for ours I suppose. Today it set forth a gorgeous X-class solar flare. It’s scientifically proven that anything with an “X” makes it at least 100-times cooler.
This was an X6.9 flare, which is pretty big, but still not like the ones we saw in late 2003 which were far more powerful. Still, this is the biggest flare from the new solar cycle, and I think the first flare from this particular sunspot, named Active Region 1263. Last week, AR 126a blew out several flares, but none as big as this one.
By coincidence I was at Big Bear Solar Observatory in California just two days ago, and saw AR 1263 roiling on the Sun’s surface. 1261 was already about to slip behind to the far side of the Sun, and I didn’t think much of 1263 because it was near the edge as well. It goes to show you that with our nearest star, it’s best to expect the unexpected!
The Sun. It roars!
Check out a video of it here.