Solar storm warning for TOMORROW: NASA on red alert over sunspot 3 times size of Earth
Indeed, on Wednesday, astronomer Dr Tony Phillips of spaceweather.com said: “The fast-growing sunspot has doubled in size in only 24 hours.”
The magnetic field surrounding AR3038, he added, has the potential to blast out so-called M-class solar flares in the direction of the Earth.
Flares are grouped into five categories — A, B, C, M and then X, the strongest — and then given a number denoting the size of the phenomena.
Solar flares are triggered by a process called “magnetic reconnection”, in which the geometry of the magnetic field in the Sun’s plasma is altered.
READ MORE: Solar storm warning: Earth faces ‘direct’ hit as giant sunspot grows
Article source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1630187/solar-storm-warning-nasa-on-red-alert-face-sunspot-three-times-size-earth-flares