AN X-FLARE FROM 'THE DANGER ZONE'
As these images show, AR3576 is near the sun's western limb, no longer facing Earth. You might think that means our planet is safely outside the line of fire. In fact, the opposite is true. AR3576 is entering a 'danger zone' where the sun and Earth are magnetically connected. This phenomenon is explained in more detail below (See "The Danger of Sunspots That Don't Face Earth").
A remarkable aspect of today's flare was its brevity. Lasting minutes rather than hours, the flare still managed to hit Earth with a pulse of energetic protons (see graph).
This plot comes from NOAA's GOES18 satellite, which counts solar protons in low-Earth orbit. It registered a clear enhancement immediately after the flare. The magnetic connection between Earth and AR3576 allowed the pulse to reach us despite the fact that the sunspot is not facing our planet.
Any more X-flares from AR3576 this weekend could send more particles to Earth, triggering a full-fledged radiation storm. Possible effects include high-latitude radio blackouts, fogged cameras on Earth-orbiting satellites, and elevated levels of radiation on commercial air flights. Stay tuned.
https://spaceweather.com/archive.php?view=1&day=16&month=02&year=2024