The Institute of Applied Geophysics recorded two powerful solar flares

This morning, December 15, two powerful flares occurred on the sun. About it reported Heliogeophysical Service of the Institute of Applied Geophysics. The flares were assigned class “M” – medium in size and capable of causing short communications interruptions in the polar regions.

“December 15 at 10:15 Moscow time in the X-ray range in the group of sunspots 3514 (N03W61) an M6.3 flare with a duration of 31 minutes was registered, at 10:34 Moscow time in the X-ray range in the group of sunspots 3514 (N03W63) an M6.9 flare with a duration of 20 minutes was registered “- reported on the institute’s website.

The day before, on December 14, scientists recorded the strongest solar flare in the last few years – class X2.9. It led to the “invasion of low-energy proton streams into near-Earth space.”

According to space weather monitoring data, the impact of solar X-ray bursts on the Earth’s ionosphere has reached the R3 level (R1 is a weak level, and R5 is an extreme level).

At level R3, long-term disturbances in low-frequency radio communications may occur; large zones of communication disruption in the high-frequency range may appear on the illuminated side of the planet. This sometimes leads to errors in determining the location of ships and aircraft.

Anastasia Larina