Biggest Solar Flare Goes Off

[rdub]

According to this BBC story, the largest recorded solar flare EVER has just occured:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3242353.stm


"Just as solar scientists thought the Sun may be winding down it unleashes the biggest solar flare ever recorded. It was so energetic that it overloaded the detectors on satellites monitoring the Sun's surface..."



-Deckard

[squanto]

1. What is going on?

Maybe that guy I saw with the sandwich board the other day was right.

[Fridays Child]

4. Are these fiery outbursts the deity's pronouncement against...

...bush's bid for world domination?

:nuke:

[dArKeR]

15. It's God's rath against the Repukes.

[DeathvadeR]

2. Fuq not again;.

In a champagne super Nova in the sky.

[jus_the_facts]

6. Ooo Oasis......here's a pic of it....started a thread in the Lounge too...

....loooove that song and CD! :loveya:



http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/2003_11_04/

www.spaceweather.com

[Fridays Child]

3. Maybe that's why my wireless connection just bit the dust.

Hmmm....

[not systems]

7. Just lost a hard drive...

on a testing system.

It was less than a year old.

Strangest thing.

[SilasSoule]

5. Some of the best coverage is over on Space.com

including photos like this of the today's flare.






and their coverage of today's flare: http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/solar_flare_031104.html

[tridim]

8. Check out the mpeg version. It's amazing.

The burst comes at the very end of the clip.

http://150.144.30.101/data/LATEST/current_eit_195.mpg

from the SOHO page: http://150.144.30.101/data/realtime/mpeg/

[minkyboodle]

14. thanks for the link

that is truly spectacular...
The end is near .... Bring out your dead...
seriously Space.com seems to be doing a great job of covering this amazing series of flares. THanks again for the mpeg link
Scott

[papertiger]

17. Wow thats some neat stuff

It's going to knock out sattelite TV. Best to rent a flick. And be sure not to piss off your little brother. He might turn Green and brawny then throw you through a wall.

Doctor Banner, belted by Gamma rays, turns into the Hulk , ain't he unglamourous. Wreaking the town with the power of a bull. Ain't no monster clown, who is as lovable. As ever loving Hulk !!!

[Dover]

9. Wowwy! Is this one headed our way or did it already arrive?

.

[Bucky]

10. Speed of light?

If you're aware of it now, it happened about 8 minutes ago, of course. The sun is 8 light minutes away from us. Do the photons, or whatever, also travel speed of light? I'd guess so, so any damage they do to your sperm cells is over with. Avoid mutants and wear a condem for the next coupla weeks.

[truthisfreedom]

12. the electromagnetic radiation hits in about 8.3 minutes, yes, but there's

more... the physical material travels at a rate that is much below the speed of light... about 4 million miles per hour, so it takes around a day (varies) to get here, and the slower stuff takes longer so it takes a few days to dissipate.

[truthisfreedom]

11. this new big one is headed our way.

they seem to take somewhat less than a day to get here, and last for a few days.

[depakid]

16. Actually, we dodged another bullet

Unlike two weeks ago, this one is oblique to earth. Good thing, too- since this one was well in excess of X20. Had this been pointed straight at us and if the particles are polarized to the south, we could have seen serious disruptions, although I have it on good authority from a guy at the BPA that the US and Canadian grids are pretty well grounded against these solar flares now.

[Avalon Sparks]

13. cool

eom