Sun releases strong solar flares, causing communication blackouts: What to know
Title: Sun releases strong solar flares, causing communication blackouts: What to know
Date of Publication: May 20th/2025 12:28p.m. ET
Author: Melina Khan
Article link: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/05/20/solar-flare-nasa-space-sun/83741492007/
Summary of Article: What exactly is a solar flare? A solar flare is a burst of radiation from the sun, and they are the most powerful explosions in our solar system. The biggest solar flares have as much "energy as a billion hydrogen bombs," and the most intense and powerful event that we have ever measured was recorded as an X28 in 2003. Luckily, the harmful radiation does not reach us on earth. In a span of two days, May 13 and May 14, the sun released two strong solar flares.
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has reported two separate flares that were ranked in the X-class, which means that these flares are on the intense scale. The flare on May 13th was an X1.2 flare and May 14th was a more powerful flare, marked at an X2.7 flare. These events are significant to us because they "can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecrafts and astronauts," which can be very damaging to how we humans operate as we are very dependent on technology. Europe, the Middle East, and Asia experienced radio blackouts and communication issues during the May 14th event, which was the X2.7 flare.
Our sun is "currently in the maximum phase of its 11-years cycle," which basically means that the suns magnetic poles are flipping, which happens every eleven years. It has officially fully flipped and has now transitioned to being "in an active and stormy state," according to NASA. NOAA's (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Space Weather Prediction Center has stated that the May 14th flare is significant due to its high intensity, as "Flares of this magnitude are not frequent."
My Thoughts: I think that the sun having flares of this magnitude is equally fascinating as it is terrifying. I love anything astronomy, especially when it has to do with our sun, but it is also a terrifying concept because we could eventually have a flare that completely cooks earth. It is highly unlikely, but the possibility always sits in the back of my mind. These events serve as a reminder that even though they haven't been detrimental, the sun always has the power to wipe us humans away. It would take eight minutes for a flare that intense to reach us, and there is absolutely nothing that we could do, we would be utterly powerless.
Watching the sun and the flares is incredibly intimidating, but it is also a beautiful thing. Its displays the power of our universe and our solar system, reminding us that we really are just small little ants in the grand scheme of things. It is also stunning because these flares create the Aurora Borealis, also know as the Northern and Southern lights. When these flares are perfectly directed towards earth, our magnetic field picks it up, and send it into our Northern and Southern hemispheres atmosphere. This in turn creates an ethereal light show in the sky of varying colors, brightness levels, shapes, and effects.
I have been lucky enough to experience the May 11th 2024 flare, which was classified as an X5.89 event, and I've never been so bewildered before. I'm looking forward to seeing more flares in the future, and am constantly on the lookout for NASA reporting if there is a flare worthy of a show. This is one of the many reasons as to why I love helioseismology and solar flares, but that doesn't disregard my fear of of what could be possibly.
Image of Earths Magnetic poles, how the flare gets pulled into our atmosphere, causing Arura Borealis.
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