Solar Flare Disrupts Radio Signals And Poses Global Infrastructure Risks

Parts of the Atlantic Ocean, South America, and Africa had a shortwave radio blackout yesterday at 8:40 am ET (7:10 pm) on November 6 due to a strong solar flare, according to NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory. High-frequency radio signals were interfered with by this solar flare, demonstrating the effect that such occurrences can have on international communications.

NASA's SDO, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Such solar flares have the potential to disrupt global navigation systems, electrical power grids, and radio transmissions. Due to increased radiation exposure, they also pose risks to spacecraft, high-altitude aircraft, and astronauts.

According to NASA, Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts. This flare is classified as an X2.3 class flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

According to Spaceweather.com, the wait is on for scientists to receive data from the coronagraph on the joint NASA/European Space Agency Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft to determine if a coronal mass ejection (CME) will impact Earth. CMEs are made up of magnetic fields and plasma plumes, and if they reach our planet, they can lead to a geomagnetic storm that could possibly result in auroras, also called the aurora borealis or the northern lights.

According to Space.com, solar flares are ranked on a 4-level classification scale, with each class ten times stronger than the one below it. X-class flares come in as the most powerful, with the class down being M-class. The number that accompanies the letter represents the strength of the individual flare, which in this case was a 2.3.