A sunspot in region 4114 has caused the most powerful flare in its existence so far – class X1.9. This led to short-term shortwave radio outages, particularly in the Pacific Ocean region, with parts of Hawaii the worst affected. About this informs Space.com.
The outbreak occurred on the night of June 20 and reached peak intensity around 5 a.m. Kyiv time. Its energy was enough to ionize the upper layers of the Earth’s atmosphere, which caused communication failures. This was especially felt by radio amateurs in Hawaii – immediately after the flash, they could record a loss of signal at frequencies below 25 MHz. In addition, the flare destabilized the large magnetic bulge in the Sun’s southern hemisphere, an arc-like structure associated with the star’s magnetic poles.
The appearance of short-wave radio disturbances is a typical reaction of the atmosphere to powerful solar flares, because the X-ray and extreme ultraviolet radiation they produce reaches our planet almost instantly, causing ionization. Due to this, the density of the atmosphere changes, which makes it difficult for high-frequency radio signals, which are used for long-distance communication, to pass through. Radio waves lose energy when they collide with electrons in the ionized layer, which can lead to a significant weakening of the signal or even complete disappearance of communication.
X-class flares are the most powerful of all solar flares. The power of this particular case (X1.9) makes it one of the strongest in the current solar cycle. This confirms that region 4114 is one of the most active regions on the Sun and deserves further observation.
New outbreaks are possible in the near future. If they are accompanied by coronal mass ejections directed towards Earth, this can trigger geomagnetic storms or even cause auroras.
