Solar Flares

Solar Flares are the sudden and explosive release of energy from the sun. The flares appear near sun spots along the dividing lines. The flares can release as much energy as a billion megatons of TNT. They usually produce violent electromagnetic radiation which can cause solar storms.

Solar Flares energy is released in many forms from Gamma Rays and X-Rays, energetic particles protons and electrons, and what scientists call mass flow. The flares are characterized by the brightness they portray in X-Rays. Smaller flares are designated as C class, the largest are designated X class.

Solar Flares can fluctuate in the hazards they create for humans and Earth by creating solar storms. Solar storms, magnetic storms in space, cause interference with our radio communication, satellites, and GPS. Large class flares can pose extreme danger for our astronauts and space craft by exposing them to high levels of electromagnetic radiation.

A report released by the National Academy of Sciences outlines the possible effects of a major solar storm on today's society. The report said such a storm could cut of power to 130 million people in United States, which would result in a variety of problems for households and in infrastructure.Fox News: Powerful Solar Storm Could Shut Down U.S. for Months (January 9, 2009)

Richard Carrington made the first discovery of Solar Flares while observing sun spots on September 1, 1859. Carrington noted that the flare happened rapidly spreading to a space of about 35,000 miles in a matter of five minutes.

Solar Flares are observed using H-alpha Telescopes to isolate the light produced by the hydrogen atoms. A lot of the observatories capture pictures of the sun with these telescopes every couple of seconds to monitor the flares.

1. September 1, 1859 first solar flare witnessed by Richard Carrington
2. April 2, 2001 (X20)
3. November 4, 2003 (X28)
4. January 20, 2005

• Yahoo! Videos: Solar Flares Videos

• Solar and Heliospheric Observatory: Solar Flare Multimedia

• Howstuffworks Video: Solar Flares (Time: 1:42)

• Google Video: Solar Flares Movie (Time: 6:00)

• Google Video: Solar Flares Apollo 17 (Time: 0:14)

• Maniacworld Video: Solar Flares 10/24/2002 - 10/27/2002 | Solar Flares 10/24/2003 - 10/28/2003

• University of Iowa: 2003 Type III Radio Bursts of Solar Flares

• Google Video: Cool Solar Flares (Time: 0:13)