Strongest Solar Flare of 2013: Sun Slings Massive Flare

The sun let loose its strongest solar flare yet this year on Mother's Day. Classified as a massive, X 1.7-class solar eruption, the flare was captured on camera by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory as it sparked an hour-long high-frequency radio blackout.

Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation that can sling the harmful material through space toward Earth. Fortunately, this radiation cannot pass through our atmosphere to impact humans on the ground. However, it can sometimes disturb the atmosphere enough so that it disrupts radio signals.

Like hurricanes, solar flares are classified based on their intensity. The weakest are known as A-class flares, followed by B, then C and M. The strongest solar flares are labeled X-class flares, and can pose a risk to astronauts and satellites in orbit when aimed directly on Earth. In addition, these flares can charge the northern lights, creating spectacular displays a few days after the eruption occurs. In fact, a solar flare that occurred in April did just that, sparking a geomagnetic storm that produced an impressive light show.

Yet this flare, fortunately for Earth, wasn't aimed at any planets. Instead, it erupted from an active sunspot on the far side of the sun.

"No planets were in the line of fire," wrote astronomer Tony Philips on his website, Spaceweather.com. "The sunspot that produced this blast is on the far side of the sun. Soon, in a few days, it will turn toward Earth, emerging into view over the sun's eastern limb."

Sometimes when a solar flare occurs, it causes a coronal mass ejection (CME), a solar phenomenon that can send billions of tons of solar particles into space, reaching other planetary bodies days after the initial burst. In this case, chronographs aboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) actually tracked a bright CME emerging from the blast site. This particular CME seems to be on course to hit NASA's Epoxi and Spitzer spacecraft on May 15^th, according to spaceweather.com.  

Currently, the sun is reaching its peak of its normal 11-year activity cycle. This means that we'll probably see a lot more solar activity into late 2013.

Want to see the CME emerging? Check it out here.