'Intense' Solar Flare Will Cause Major Geomagnetic Storms and Aurora Displays, NASA Says

Mar. 15, 2025

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare on Oct. 1, 2024.Photo:NASA/SDO

NASA/SDO

NASA had a busy start to October, as the agency announced that the sun emitted several major solar flares on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Oct. 1, NASAannouncedthat itsSolar Dynamics Observatory— which constantly watches the sun — captured footage of images of a massive solar flare classified as an X7.1-strength flare, meaning it was one of the “most intense” types of flares.

On Thursday, Oct. 3,NASAalso announced that the observatory had captured even more images of another, even stronger flare — this time, an X9.0 flare that marked the strongest one recorded this season (solar cycle 25).

“Today’s X9 (R3) flare was prolific, but impulsive,” NOAAwrote in an X post. “Still, the flare was associated with a CME and analyses and model runs are being conducted at this time.”

“A CME is anticipated to reach and impact Earth with elevated geomagnetic response and dependent upon the orientation of the embedded magnetic field, potential exists for Strong Storm levels,” the Space Weather Prediction Center said in its advisory.

If NOAA’s forecasts are correct, people in the U.S. as far south as Illinois or Oregon could get a glimpse at the northern lights.

“Limited, minor effects to some technological infrastructure possible, but mainly mitigatable. The aurora may become visible over many of the northern states and some of the lower Midwest to Oregon,” the center added.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of an X9.0 solar flare – as seen in the bright flash in the center – on Oct. 03, 2024. The image shows a blend of 171 Angstrom, and 131 Angstrom light, subsets of extreme ultraviolet light.NASA/SDO

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“As these air particles shed the energy they picked up from the collision, each atom starts to glow in a different color,” the lab states.

source: people.com