"In recent days the region has unleashed multiple outbursts, including a solar flare that ranks as one of the most powerful of the current solar cycle. That dramatic flash of light was followed by a coronal mass ejection, or CME, an event in which the sun propels a giant cloud of magnetized plasma into space. If Earth is in the firing line of a CME, it can wreak havoc on our planet in a range of phenomena referred to as space weather."
"In response to the outbursts, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a G4 geomagnetic storm watch for Wednesdaythe fourth such alert of the current solar cycle. The scale behind this system runs from one to five, with a G4 watch deemed severe. An event of this magnitude can cause potential interference to power grids, spacecraft operations, satellite navigation and radio communications."
Active region 4274 (AR4274) produced multiple outbursts including one of the most powerful solar flares of the current solar cycle and a coronal mass ejection (CME). The CME and material from AR4274 are directed toward Earth at about 3.3 million miles per hour and may merge with two earlier, slower CMEs from Sunday and Monday. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G4 geomagnetic storm watch for Wednesday, a severe level on the 1-5 scale. A G4 event can interfere with power grids, spacecraft, satellite navigation, and radio communications and produce auroras far south.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
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