[KCDXC] Solar flare eruptions set to reach Earth

[W0WOI at aol.com]

17  February 2011 Last  updated at 08:07 ET  
Solar flare eruptions set to reach Earth
By Paul Rincon Science reporter, BBC News  
 
 
 
 
 
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(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12493980#play) 




 
Time lapse image of the solar  flare as seen by Nasa's Solar Dynamics 
Observatory


 
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Scientists around the world will be  watching closely as three eruptions 
from the Sun reach the Earth over Thursday  and Friday.  
These "coronal mass ejections" will slam into the Earth's magnetic  shield. 
The waves of charged solar particles are the result of three solar flares  
directed at Earth in recent days, including the most powerful since 2006. 
The biggest flares can disrupt technology, including power grids,  
communications systems and satellites. 
The northern lights (Aurora Borealis) may also be visible further south 
than  is normally the case - including from northern parts of the UK. 
"Our current view is that the effect of the solar flare is likely to reach  
Earth later today (Thursday GMT), possibly tomorrow morning," said Alan 
Thomson,  head of geomagnetism at the British Geological Survey (BGS). 
He told BBC News: "In the scientific community, there's a feeling that it's 
 not as intense as we first thought it might be. But it's possible still 
that it  could be a large enough event for us to see the northern lights in 
the UK." 
However, weather forecasts suggested cloudy conditions could mar views of 
any  aurorae.Technological impact  
The US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) said 
that  three coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were en route as the result of solar 
flares  on the 13, 14 and 15 February (GMT). 
"The last of the three seems to be the fastest and may catch both of the  
forerunners about mid-to-late day tomorrow, February 17," read a statement 
from  Noaa's Space Weather Prediction Center. 
The northern lights could be  seen further south than is normal 
The flare recorded at 0156 GMT on 15 February was the strongest such event 
in  four years, according to the US space agency (Nasa), which has been 
monitoring  activity on the Sun. The event was classified as a so-called 
X-flare, the most  intense type. 
The source of all three events, sunspot 1158, has expanded rapidly in 
recent  days. 
Solar flares are caused by the sudden release of magnetic energy stored in  
the Sun's atmosphere. 
Their effects can interfere with modern technology on Earth, such as  
electrical power grids, communications systems and satellites - including  
satellite navigation (or sat-nav) signals. 
Although scientists are expecting most geomagnetic activity to occur on  
Thursday, Chinese state media has already reported some disruption to 
shortwave  radio communications in the south of the country. Awakening Sun  
In 1972, a geomagnetic storm provoked by a solar flare knocked out  
long-distance telephone communication across the US state of Illinois. And in  
1989, another storm plunged six million people into darkness across the Canadian 
 province of Quebec. 
Dr Thomson said it was possible infrastructure could be affected this time, 
 but stressed: "The X-flare that was observed the other day was lower in  
magnitude than similar flares that have been associated with technological  
damage such as the loss of the Quebec power grid... and even the large 
magnetic  storm in 2003, which caused some damage to satellites in orbit." 
Scientists will have around half an hour's notice that the wave of charged  
particles is about to hit the Earth's magnetic shield.  
This is taken from the point at which a Nasa satellite called Ace (the  
Advanced Composition Explorer) registers the solar radiation on its 
instruments:  "We're sitting waiting for that event to happen," said Dr Thomson. 
Researchers say the Sun has been awakening after a period of several years 
of  low activity.