X1.7 Flare, January 27, 2012

       
    Updated 04:52 UTC Jan 28 2012

  Sunspot Region 1402 unleashed an X flare that peaked at X1.7 at 18:33 UTC. There was a full halo CME seen in association with this X flare event. At this time, it would appear that Earth may see a glancing blow from this CME. We will update as more data comes in.

  

   The X Flare can easily be depicted on this image from  SDO/EVE SAM.  It can be seen originating from Sunspot Region 1402 which has now rotated off on to the far western limb of the solar disk.
This X flare wasEearth directed. Anything showing up on the Xray flux is Earth registered.
If this X flare had occured 4-5 days ago while directly Earth facing, it would have registered significantly higher on the X scale.

  

   This event caused another sharp rise in Protons, as we see here on the current GOES Proton Flux.

NOAA Alerts:

ALERT: Proton Event 100MeV Integral Flux exceeded 1pfu

Begin Time: 2012 Jan 27 1900 UTC

ALERT: Proton Event 10MeV Integral Flux exceeded 100pfu
Begin Time: 2012 Jan 27 2105 UTC
NOAA Scale: S2 - Moderate

ALERT: Proton Event 10MeV Integral Flux exceeded 100pfu
Begin Time: 2012 Jan 27 2105 UTC
NOAA Scale: S2 - Moderate

   This X 1.7 Flare started bombarding the Ionosphere with protons within minutes of being released from the Sun.  The majority of the energy is extinguished in the extreme lower region of the ionosphere (around 50-80 km in altitude). This area is particularly important to radio communications because this is the area where most of the absorption of radio signals energy occurs. The enhanced ionization produced by incoming energetic protons increases the absorption levels in the lower ionosphere and can have the effect of completely blocking all ionospheric radio communications through the polar regions. Such events are known as Polar Cap Absorption events (or PCAs). These events commence and last as long as the energy of incoming protons at approximately greater than 10 MeV exceeds

roughly 10 pfu. This graph shows the frequencies that are currently being affected, and where.

Solar Activity Update, January 27, 2012

      Updated @18:40 Jan. 27, 2012

    Sunspot Region 1402 unleashed an X flare that peaked at X1.7 at 18:33 UTC.

     
     As of this post there have been five C class flares recorded by GOES today from Sunspot Regions 1401, 1402, and 1409.  The largest of these flares was a C5.5 Solar Flare from Sunspot Region 1402 at 06:24 UTC.  There was a CME eruption from the SW region of the disk that is seen beginning to eject on SOHO LC2 at approximatley 05:12 UTC.  This CME was ejected from near a new Sunspot Region  that was developing before it rotated off of the Earth facing side of the disk, and has not yet been numbered.

In this SOHO Lasco C2 image we get a nice view of this latest CME as it continues to speed away from the Solar Disk. Because of the direction this CME was ejected, it is not expected to be geoeffective.

LDE Flare In Progress

  
   Latest Update - 08:17 UTC
   Jan 26, 2012 :

We have yet another LDE (long duration event) Flare in progress. This flare began around 04:09 UTC and reached a max of C6.4 at 05:49 UTC. This is the third LDE of 2012.

Keep checking back for current updates!

   There was a CME associated with

this LDE flare. Due to the location of 1402 on the far Northwest area of the solar disk, this CME is most likley not Earth directed

 

 

Region 1402 says "bye" but not without flaring

   We have C5.8 and a C7.9 solar flare from sunspot region 1402, one right after another.

*The first flare was a C5.8 that peaked at 00:36 UTC Jan 26th.

The background Xray level slowly dropped to C1.7, then went on the rise again at 01:40 UTC.

*The second flare was a C7.9 that peaked at 01:49 UTC Jan 26.

   Sunspot regions 1401 and 1402 are now on the Northwest limb and will soon rotate off the western limb out of a Earth facing view. But not without a last "Good bye"! We will have to wait around 20 days for these two very active regions to rotate back in Earths direction

 We also noticed some ejection on SDO