Powerful Solar Flare May Charge Up Northern Lights Thursdayys | NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory | Skywatching, Space Weather & Solar Storms | Space.com
Good thing this wasn't pointed at us. I suspect we'll see a few more of these over the next couple years while the sun goes through solar maximum.
Extremely powerful solar storms can pose a hazard to satellites and spacecraft in orbit, as well as power grids and other infrastructure on Earth. Tuesday's powerful solar eruption, however, was not aimed squarely at Earth.
"The eruption took place well off-center, which means that the lion's share of the electrified particles shot into space will probably miss Earth," explained SPACE.com's skywatching columnist Joe Rao. "But nonetheless, this M-2 flare still appears potent enough, to send enough subatomic material our way to interact to some degree with our magnetic poles, though I think the main show will be for places at high latitudes."
Good thing this wasn't pointed at us. I suspect we'll see a few more of these over the next couple years while the sun goes through solar maximum.