On February 13, 2011, sunspot 1158 let loose the strongest solar flare of the current solar cycle, a blast of radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to x-rays and gamma-rays. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded an intense flash of extreme ultraviolet radiation, as seen above, and located in approximately the middle of the Sun’s disk in the image below.
The eruption also produced a loud blast of radio waves, and coronagraph data from STEREO-A and SOHO agree that the explosion produced a fast but not particularly bright coronal mass ejection.
The Astronomical Research Center (A.R.C) mentioned that Spaceweather.com predicts a CME cloud will likely hit Earth’s magnetic field on or about Feb. 15th, and high-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras.
Jason Major from Lights in the Dark created the video below of magnetic activity around a sunspot 1158, from data region from SDO spacecraft, during February 12-13, 2011.