Sun Unleashes Powerful Solar Flares

More CMEs Expected, Storm Could Extend into Weekend

On May 5-6, 2024, the Sun unleashed a series of powerful X-class solar flares, the strongest category of solar storms. These flares have the potential to cause significant disruptions to Earth's magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere, as well as communications and power grids.

The solar flares were followed by a series of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are clouds of charged particles that can travel through space and interact with Earth's magnetic field. More CMEs are expected in the coming days, and their arrival could extend the storm into the weekend.

Space weather experts are urging people to sign up for Space Weather Alerts to receive instant text notifications of any significant space weather events that could impact Earth.