Solar Flare Threatens More Blackouts

One of the most powerful solar flares in years erupted from giant
sunspot 486 this morning at approximately 1110 UT. The blast measured X17
on the
Richter scale of solar flares . As a result of the explosion, a
strong S3-class solar radiation storm is underway. Click
here to learn
how such storms can affect our planet. The explosion also hurled a coronal
mass ejection (CME) toward Earth. When it left the sun, the cloud was traveling
2125 km/s (almost 5 million mph). This CME could trigger bright auroras
when it sweeps past our planet perhaps as early as tonight.

DON’T PANIC: Some rumors spreading across the internet claim that the
ongoing solar storm could wreak terrible havoc on Earth. Not so. There
is a slim chance of power blackouts and communication outages, but the
main side effect of this solar activity will be harmless and beautiful
auroras

from SpaceWeather.com