Solar Flare Triggers Radio Signal Blackout in Pacific

A large solar flare occurred Monday (1/5/2024). These flares cause radio signal interference around the Pacific.

TANGKAPAN LAYAR SPACE/NASA/SDO/AIA/EVE/HMI SCIENCE TEAMS/HELIOVIEWER.ORG/DAISY DOBRIJEVIC

A Solar Flare with an M9.5 class occurred on Tuesday (4/30/2024) between 23.46-23.58 Universal time or Wednesday (5/1/2024) between 06.46-06.58 WIB. This flare occurred in an area that has a Sunspot with the code R3654. As solar activity increases, solar flares are expected to occur more frequently.

A powerful explosion occurred on the surface of the Sun Wednesday (1/5/2024) morning, triggering a solar flare. This powerful flare triggered radio signal interference in the Pacific. As the peak of the solar activity cycle approaches, explosions on the Sun will continue to occur and increase awareness of a number of human technologies.

The peak of the flare occurred on Tuesday (30/4/2024) at 23.46-23.58 universal time or Wednesday (1/5/2024) between 06.46-06.58 WIB. The explosion occurred in an area containing the R3654 sunspot. According to Space Weather, this beacon is in class M9.53, aka a little closer to being in the strongest beacon group with class X.

Sunspots are dark areas on the photosphere or surface of the Sun. The appearance of these sunspots is a sign of increasing solar activity. These spots are formed due to the strong flux or flow of magnetism from within the Sun. Therefore, these spots have a larger magnetic field compared to the surrounding areas.

In addition to the strength of the magnetic field, Sunspots appear darker than the surrounding areas because the magnetic field surrounding the spot deflects the heat. As a result, the center of the spot becomes cooler. These spots can last for several hours to several months.

Also read: Solar Storms and the Bunkers of Tech Billionaires

The explosion on sunspots triggers the occurrence of sound whose strength is classified into classes A, B, C, M, and X. Class A has the weakest explosion, while X has the strongest. The strength of a Class A explosion is one-tenth of Class B or 10 times the strength of Class A, and so on. Therefore, the strength of an X-class sound is 10 times the strength of an M-class sound or 100 times the strength of a C-class sound.

SPACEWEATHER.COM

Sunspot R3654 triggered a class M9.5 solar flare on Tuesday (30/4/2024) between 23:46-23:58 Universal Time or Wednesday (1/5/2024) between 06:46-06:58 WIB. This class M9.5 flare has a strength close to the highest class, which is a class X flare.

Each sound class is divided into 1-9, which describes the relative strength of the sound, with the larger number indicating greater strength. However, there are some sounds whose strength exceeds class X9. One of them is the sound that occurred in 2003, which is predicted to have a strength of X45.

Class C sound is the weakest sound that can have a real impact on the Earth. This C sound often occurs, but rarely triggers coronal mass ejections (CME) that directly affect the Earth. Class M sound can cause short-term radio signal blackout in areas around the Earth's poles and create small radiation storms that endanger astronauts who are on duty in space.

Currently, the measurement of sound intensity is partly carried out using the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites 16 (GOES-16) owned by the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

On April 30, the sound caused a blackout of shortwave radio signals in the Pacific region. The area most affected by this sound was the area experiencing midday. In Indonesia, the eastern region will experience greater radio signal disturbances compared to the central and western regions of Indonesia.

Also read: From Colorful Aurora to Radio Breakup

“Mariners and amateur radio operators may notice a loss of radio signals below 20 megahertz (MHz) for 30 minutes after the peak of the flare,” reports Space Weather.

Meanwhile, observations from the Space Weather Monitoring System (SWIFtS) of the National Research and Innovation Agency mentioned that the solar explosion on April 30th triggered moderate ionospheric disturbances. As a result, radio signal disruptions that occurred between May 1-2, 2024 were also moderate.

Radio signal disturbance usually occurs shortly after a sound event. The sound emits strong X-rays and ultraviolet radiation waves into space. If the radiation is directed towards the Earth, it will take only about 8 minutes for the radiation to reach the Earth.

NASA/SDO

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) belonging to the United States Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) won a solar flare or flare as seen from the flash of light on the left on December 31, 2023. In 2024, solar activity is expected to reach maximum as the peak of the 25th solar cycle arrives.

Upon arriving on Earth, this radiation immediately ionizes the upper atmosphere. This ionization makes the upper atmosphere denser, which can disrupt the reflection of high-frequency short wave radio signals. However, these radio signals are used for long-distance communication.

Seafarers and amateur radio operators may have noticed the loss of radio signals with frequencies below 20 megahertz (MHz) for 30 minutes after the sound peak occurred.

The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center states that radio waves interacting with ionized electrons in the upper atmosphere will lose energy due to frequent collisions with electrons. As a result, radio signal strength will decrease or may be completely absorbed.

Towards the top

The solar explosion that gave rise to a flare with a strength close to that of the strongest flare class shows that the peak of the 11-year cycle of solar activity is approaching. The appearance of sunspots is becoming more frequent and more numerous, creating the potential for flares, coronal mass ejections (CME), and solar storms or magnetic storms getting bigger.

A solar physicist at the National Solar Observatory in Boulder, Colorado, USA, in his X account, as quoted from Space, May 1 2024, said that the number of sunspots has continued to increase over the last few weeks. Therefore, it is believed that the flare approaching class X which occurred on April 30 will be followed by the next class X flare.

The current Solar Cycle is the 25th cycle that has occurred since December 2019. As quoted from The Washington Post, January 14 2024, this cycle is expected to reach peak in January-October 2024. However, the Sun's high activity will continue until 2025-2026.

This situation has prompted solar researchers and international space weather monitoring agencies to actively monitor the condition of the Sun. Space weather directly impacts human technology, especially electric networks in high latitude areas or around the poles.

NASA/SDO

The sound of the Sun and explosions of solar materials are released into the Sun's surrounding environment during a solar activity increase on June 20, 2013.

Sun activity also has a direct impact on human technology in space and outer space, such as increasing radiation exposure on airplanes and interference with satellites.

However, this increased solar activity does not have a direct impact on humans and living things on Earth. Earth's magnetic field protects living creatures from bombardment of radiation and charged particles from outer space. This magnetic field is what makes living things survive on Earth today.

Also read: There is a giant corona hole on the surface of the sun

However, along with the rapid development of human technology, humans have become increasingly dependent on their own creations. If these technologies are eventually directly affected by the increase in solar activity, the impact on modern humans will be greatly felt.