Solar flares      

• Recently X-class solar flares led to radio blackouts in parts of the US, Pacific Ocean.

ABOUT SOLAR FLARES

• Solar flares are giant explosions on the sun that send energy, light, and high-speed particles into space.
• These flares are often associated with solar magnetic storms known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs).
• It happens when energy stored in ‘twisted’ magnetic fields (usually above sunspots) is suddenly released.
• They can affect radio communications, power grids and navigation signals and endanger astronauts and spacecraft.
• Solar flares can be divided into various categories based on their brightness in X-ray wavelengths.
• The smallest are A-class, followed by B, C, M, and X, the largest.
• Each letter represents a 10-fold increase in energy output.
• Within each letter class, there is a finer scale from 1 to 9.