WASHINGTON: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has revealed that the sun has unleashed two powerful solar flares. The first solar flare occurred at 4:00 a.m. PST on Thursday, followed by a second flare at 11:30 a.m. PST on Friday.
These solar flares, captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, are described as “powerful bursts of energy” that have the ability to interfere with “radio communications, navigation signals” and even “pose a risk to spacecraft and astronauts.”
The first solar flare is classified as “X1.8”, while the second was rated as “X1.7”. The X marking on the scale indicates the intensity of the flare, with higher numbers indicating greater strength.
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According to the Space Weather Prediction Center, a US government organization, solar flares have the potential to disrupt high-frequency radio signals and can lead to a complete loss of signal over significant portions of the “sunlit side of Earth.” Despite these potential effects, the public is assured that there are no major negative side effects to worry about.
