A solar flare which erupted from the surface of the sun was captured in vivid detail by an orbiting observatory. This raw live-action shot was edited by NASA into a dramatic video of the event.
The flare left the surface of the sun at 10:05 EDT on April 2. It was classified as an M6.5 event, which is a moderate flare, only about 10 percent as powerful as X, the most severe category.
"The number after the M provides more information about its strength. An M2 is twice as intense as an M1, an M3 is three times as intense, etc.," NASA explained in a press release about the event. [https://www.nasa.gov/content/20140402-nasa-releases-images-of-m6.5-class-solar-flare]
These powerful bursts of radiation do not have any effect on the people of Earth, as we are protected by the atmosphere and our planet's magnetic field.
NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) which took the video was launched in February 2010, with a five-year mission to observe our companion star.
"SDO is designed to help us understand the sun's influence on Earth and near-Earth space by studying the solar atmosphere on small scales of space and time and in many wavelengths simultaneously," mission engineers wrote on the program Web site.
The satellite had its sights aimed at the area where the flare formed, and astronomers were greeted by what many are now referring to as a "graceful eruption." Before the flare lifted off the surface of the sun, the swelling was several times the size of the Earth.
The greatest solar flare to ever strike the Earth came in contact with our planet in 1859. That became known as the Carrington Event, and it disrupted telegraph communication systems around the world.
Solar flares are sudden eruptions of radiation that pour forth from the surface of the sun. They are formed in the extreme magnetic fields on the star. The events can affect satellites, and could prove to be a danger to future space travelers. For most people, the major effect of a flare headed toward the Earth could be interference in GPS and communications systems.
On March 13, a flare measuring M9.3 erupted from the sun. An X-class solar flare was detected on March 29. This was just over a month after another X-class flare, recorded on Feb. 24.
The latest eruption was not aimed near the Earth.
Images were recorded in two wavelengths of light, which were colorized into red and yellow for the snippet.
