A Potentially Dangerous “Sunspot” Is Pointed At Earth
(ConservativeInsider.org) – Developments in science allow people to know and understand so much about our world and outer space. With such leaps forward, however, often come potential issues. One such item raising eyebrows, but not too much concern among scientists, is a sunspot that has grown quickly in recent days with the possibility of emitting disruptive solar flares.
On Wednesday, June 22, sunspot AR3038 doubled in size from the previous day. The sunspot, which is a cooler area of the sun, continues to grow and will likely emit small solar flares, or radiation disruptions that occur when plasma leaves the sun’s surface. These flares take about eight minutes to reach the Earth and can disrupt electronic devices.
Sunspot THREE TIMES the size of Earth is facing directly at our planet https://t.co/9U7uF2mpfr
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) June 22, 2022
While this does sound alarming at first, Rob Steenburgh of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Forecast Office (SWFO) told USA Today that the increase in size is simply “what sunspots do.” They will eventually get smaller.
Experts predict a mere 30% chance that AR3038 will emit medium-sized solar flares, giving large flares only a 10% chance of occurring.
If a large solar flare were to occur, the SWFO would issue a warning, highlighting how it may cause disruptions in internet communications and satellites. But, experts all agreed on the fact that, for now, there is nothing to worry about with AR3038.
Copyright 2022, ConservativeInsider.org
