Solar Eruption Triggers Strongest Solar Storm in Seven Years

A massive region of sunspots, AR3697, has captured attention as it exceeds ten times the size of Earth. This area was the site of powerful eruptions last month, leading to the strongest geomagnetic storm in recent years. Now, a new powerful eruption on the Sun has produced the most intense solar radiation storm since 2017, according to Space.

Scientists from the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center reported that an M9.7 class eruption occurred in the AR3697 sunspot area on Saturday, June 8. This class of eruption is the second strongest after the X class, which represents the potential for the most powerful solar flares.

The latest eruption was so intense that it resulted in the strongest solar radiation storm in the past seven years. Such events pose risks to spacecraft and satellite launch operations, as well as potentially disrupting shortwave radio communications on Earth. The new storm reached an S3 level, causing widespread radio blackouts in the northern polar regions.

Following the solar eruption, energetic protons raced towards our planet at nearly the speed of light. Upon reaching Earth, these particles interacted with the magnetic field and moved towards the poles. During the M9.7 class eruption, there was also a coronal mass ejection, which is the expulsion of plasma into space. This plasma flow is expected to reach the outer layers of Earth's atmosphere on Tuesday, June 11, and could trigger a geomagnetic storm, potentially at a G2 moderate level.

Additionally, on Monday, June 10, a more powerful x1.5 class solar flare occurred in the same sunspot area, which also led to brief radio blackouts in certain regions of the planet. Scientists predict that solar activity levels may decrease in the coming days, as the AR3697 sunspot region is not directed towards Earth.