Sound The Trumpet : Sun Fires Solar Storm Directly At Earth

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“Sun Fires Solar Storm Directly At Earth”
by space.com
August 21st, 2013

The sun unleashed a powerful storm early Tuesday morning (Aug. 20), sending an enormous cloud of superheated particles rocketing toward Earth.

The solar eruption, known as acoronal mass ejection (CME), occurred at 4:24 a.m. EDT (0824 GMT) Tuesday and blasted billions of tons of solar particles toward Earth at a mind-boggling speed of 2 million mph (3.3 million km/h).

“Experimental NASA research models, based on observations from NASA’s Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory, show that the CME left the sun at speeds of around 570 miles per second, which is a fairly typical speed for CMEs,” NASA officials wrote in an update today. NASA’s twin Stereo spacecraft and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, operated by NASA and the European Space Agency, captured photos of the solar storm from space.

The particles ejected by Earth-directed CMEs typically take two or three days to reach our planet, at which point they can trigger geomagnetic storms that can disrupt radio communications, GPS signals and power grids.

However, Tuesday’s blast doesn’t appear to have too much disruptive potential.

“In the past, geomagnetic storms caused by CMEs of this strength have usually been mild,” NASA officials wrote.

Solar Quiz: How Well Do You Know Our Sun?

Many of us take the sun for granted, giving it little thought until it scorches our skin or gets in our eyes. But our star is a fascinating and complex object, a gigantic fusion reactor that gives us life. How much do you know about the sun?

CMEs that hit Earth can also ramp up the auroras, also known as the northern and southern lights. In fact, an enhanced auroral display may be on tap tonight and tomorrow for some skywatchers, thanks to a CME that erupted on Saturday (Aug. 17).

The cloud from this CME is not expected to slam directly into Earth, but our planet will likely cruise through the cloud’s wake after it passes by, experts said.

Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13