Sunspot unleashes intense solar flare

Sunspot unleashes intense solar flare - Technology & science - Space - Space.com | NBC News
"AR1654 is getting bigger as it turns toward Earth," the website reported.
"Not only is the chance of flares increasing, but also the chance of an Earth-directed eruption.
This could be the sunspot that breaks the recent lengthy spell of calm space weather around our planet."
The sun is in an active phase of its current 11-year weather cycle, which scientists call Solar Cycle 24. The sun's activity cycle is expected to reach its peak (or "solar maximum") in 2013, astronomers have said.
The most powerful solar flares, X-class flares, have the most significant effect on Earth.
They can cause long-lasting radiation storms in our planet's upper atmosphere and trigger radio blackouts.
Medium-size M-class flares can cause brief radio blackouts in the polar regions and occasional minor radiation storms.
C-class flares, the weakest in scientists' three-tiered classification system, have few noticeable consequences.