Sunspot’s explosion produces strongest solar flare in 7 years, causes…

New Delhi: It was one of the most spectacular cosmic events of the recent times on Thursday, October 3 when Sunspot AR3842 exploded, producing the strongest solar flare in seven years, reports SpaceWeather.

The phenomenon produced the strongest solar flare of Solar Cycle 25 so far.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the X9.1-category blast

Radiation from the flare ionized the top of Earth’s atmosphere and caused a deep shortwave blackout over Africa and the South Atlantic. Ham radio operators in the area may have noticed loss of signal at frequencies below 30 MHz for as much as a half an hour after 12:18 UTC, says www.spaceweather.com.

The explosion also produced a halo CME. Now that a full set of images has arrived from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), it’s clear that the CME is potent. NOAA forecasts of a strong geomagnetic storm when it arrives on Oct. 6th are probably correct. CME impact alerts, adds www.spaceweather.com.