the sunspot that recently caused them is active again

We already knew that solar storms would soon return. What we didn’t know was that it would sit hand in hand with the same spots that caused the surprisingly widespread auroras in May 2024. Recently powerful X-class solar flare at the southeastern edge of the Sun.

Solar flares are energetic bursts of electromagnetic radiation from the surface of our star that occur when releases magnetic energy stored in the solar atmosphere. They are classified by size into letter groups, with the X class being the most powerful. Within each class are numbers from 1 to 10. The recent X flare recorded X-2.9.

But how do we know that a solar flare came from AR3664? Although sunspot group 3664 remains hidden from view by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, scientists can track progress. sunspot on the far side of the Sun using helioseismology data.

Given AR3664’s affinity for X-flares and the fact that it was observed close to yesterday’s explosive solar flare, it seems reasonable to conclude that the AR3664 is to blame.

This is important news because AR3664 will turn towards Earth later this week. The hyperactive sunspot group is the most active in our star’s current solar cycle, and the recent X-flare will show that this region still has a few tricks up its sleeve.

However, when AR3664 comes into view again, will retain its activities, but not its name. This is because while the returned region is likely to be AR3664, due to the limited number of observations of sunspots on the far side of the Sun, scientists cannot be sure that this is the case. Therefore, all spots that rotate in the field of view are renamed.

The most recent X-flare of this group was also accompanied by a coronal mass ejection (CME), which ejects plasma and a magnetic field. ​from the surface of the Sun explosively. However, NASA’s model shows that CME is missing the target.