List Of Solar Storms
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Solar storms of different types are caused by disturbances on the Sun, most often from coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and solar flares from active regions, or, less often, from
coronal hole Coronal holes are regions of the Sun's corona that emit low levels of ultraviolet and X-ray radiation compared to their surroundings. They are composed of relatively cool and tenuous plasma (physics), plasma permeated by magnetic fields that are o ...
s. Minor to active solar storms (i.e. storming restricted to higher latitudes) may occur under elevated background
solar wind The solar wind is a stream of charged particles released from the Sun's outermost atmospheric layer, the Stellar corona, corona. This Plasma (physics), plasma mostly consists of electrons, protons and alpha particles with kinetic energy betwee ...
conditions when the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) orientation is southward, toward the Earth (which also leads to much stronger storming conditions from CME-related sources).


Background

Active stars produce disturbances in space weather and, if strong enough, in their own space climate. Science studies such phenomena with the field of
heliophysics Heliophysics (from the prefix "wikt:helio-, helio", from Attic Greek ''hḗlios'', meaning Sun, and the noun "physics": the science of matter and energy and their interactions) is the physics of the Sun and its connection with the Solar System. ...
, which is an interdisciplinary combination of solar physics and
planetary science Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of ...
. In the
Solar System The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Sola ...
, the Sun can produce intense geomagnetic and energetic particle storms capable of causing severe damage to technology. It can result in large scale
power outage A power outage, also called a blackout, a power failure, a power blackout, a power loss, a power cut, or a power out is the complete loss of the electrical power network supply to an end user. There are many causes of power failures in an el ...
s, disruption or blackouts of radio communications (including GPS), damage or destruction of
submarine communications cable A submarine communications cable is a cable laid on the seabed between land-based stations to carry telecommunication signals across stretches of ocean and sea. The first submarine communications cables were laid beginning in the 1850s and car ...
s, and temporary to permanent disabling of satellites and other electronics. Intense solar storms may also be hazardous to high-latitude, high-altitude aviation and to
human spaceflight Human spaceflight (also referred to as manned spaceflight or crewed spaceflight) is spaceflight with a crew or passengers aboard a spacecraft, often with the spacecraft being operated directly by the onboard human crew. Spacecraft can also be ...
. Geomagnetic storms are the cause of
aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...
. The most significant known solar storm, across the most parameters, occurred in September 1859 and is known as the " Carrington event". The damage from the most potent solar storms is capable of existentially threatening the stability of modern human civilization, although proper preparedness and mitigation can substantially reduce the hazards. Proxy data from Earth, as well as analysis of stars similar to the Sun, suggest that the Sun may be also capable of producing so-called " superflares", which are as much as 1,000 times stronger than any flares in the historical record. Other research, like models of solar flares and statistics of extreme solar events reconstructed using cosmogenic isotope data in terrestrial archives, indicate otherwise. The discrepancy is not yet resolved and may be related to a biased statistic of the stellar population of solar analogs.


Coronal mass ejections and solar particle events


Events affecting Earth


Proxy evidence

This section contains a list of possible events that are indicated by indirect, or proxy data. The scientific value of such data remains unresolved. * 12351– Probable Miyake event, which would be the largest known and twice the 774–775 event. * 7176 BCE Found in beryllium-10 (and other
isotope Isotopes are distinct nuclear species (or ''nuclides'') of the same chemical element. They have the same atomic number (number of protons in their Atomic nucleus, nuclei) and position in the periodic table (and hence belong to the same chemica ...
s) spike in ice cores and corroborated by tree rings. It unexpectedly appears to have occurred near a Solar minimum and was as strong as, or probably even slightly stronger than the famous 774–775 CE event. * 5410 BCE * 5259 BCE Found in beryllium-10 spike in ice cores and corroborated by tree rings. At least as strong as the 774–775 event. * 660 BCE * 774–775 CE This extreme solar proton event is the first identified Miyake event. It caused the largest and most rapid rise in
carbon-14 Carbon-14, C-14, C or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic matter is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and coll ...
levels ever recorded. * 993–994 CE It caused a carbon-14 spike visible in tree rings which was used to date Viking archaeological remains in L'Anse aux Meadows in
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
to 1021. * 1052 CE found in carbon-14 spike * 1279 CE found in carbon-14 spike


Direct measurements and/or visual observations

Caused interference to United States power grid. , - , Aug 1989 , , , - , Nov 1991 , Geomagnetic storm of November 1991 , An intense solar storm with about half the energy output of the March 1989 storm. Aurorae were visible in the US as far south as Texas , - , Apr 2000 , , , - , Jul 2000 , Bastille Day solar storm , Caused by an X8-class solar flare aimed directly at Earth , - , Apr 2001 , , A solar flare from a sunspot region associated with this activity and preceding this period produced the then largest flare detected during the Space Age at about X20 (the first event to saturate spaceborne monitoring instruments, this was exceeded in 2003) but was directed away from Earth. , - , Nov 2001 , Geomagnetic storm of November 2001 , A fast-moving CME triggered vivid aurorae as far south as Texas, California, and Florida , - , Oct 2003 , 2003 Halloween solar storms , Among top few most intense storms of the Space Age; aurora visible as far south as Texas and the Mediterranean countries of Europe. A solar flare with x-ray flux estimated to be around X45 occurred from an associated active region on 4 November but was directed away from Earth. , - , Nov 2003 , Solar storms of November 2003 , 2021 study estimated Dstm of −533 nT , - , Jan 2005 , , The most intense solar flare in 15 years with sunspot 720 erupting, 5 times from January 15 to 20. , - , Mar 2015 , St. Patrick's Day storm , Largest geomagnetic storm of solar cycle 24, driven by interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) variations , - , Sep 2017 , , Triggered by an X13 class solar flare , - , Feb 2022 , , A mild solar particle and geomagnetic storm of otherwise little consequence led to the premature reentry and destruction of 40
SpaceX Space Exploration Technologies Corp., commonly referred to as SpaceX, is an America, American space technology company headquartered at the SpaceX Starbase, Starbase development site in Starbase, Texas. Since its founding in 2002, the compa ...
Starlink satellites launched February 3, 2022 due to increased atmospheric drag. , - , 30 April – 12 May 2024 , May 2024 solar storms , X1.2(X1.3)-class flares and X4.5-class flare. The flares with a magnitude of 6–7 occurred between 30 April and 4 May 2024. On 5 May the strength of the solar storm reached 5 points, which is considered strong according to the K-index. The rapidly growing sunspot AR3663 became the most active spot of the solar cycle 25. On 5 May alone, it emitted two X-class (strongest) flares and six M-class (medium) flares. Each of these flares resulted in a short-term but profound disconnection of the Earth's radio signal, resulting in signal loss at frequencies below 30 mega
hertz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in ter ...
(MHz). An extreme (G5) geomagnetic storm alert was issued by the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with Weather forecasting, forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, Hydrography, charting the seas, ...
(NOAA) – the first in almost 20 years. The final storms reaching the highest level of NOAA's G-scale before solar cycle 25 occurred in 2005 in May, August, and September, respectively. With a NOAA rating of G5, a peak Dst of −412 nT, and aurorae seen at far lower latitudes than usual in both hemispheres, this geomagnetic storm was the most powerful to affect Earth since November of 2003. , - , Oct 2024 , October 2024 solar storm , Triggered by an X1.8 solar flare that produced a relatively fast CME. The storm reached a peak Dst of −341 nT.


Events not affecting Earth

The above events affected
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
(and its vicinity, known as the
magnetosphere In astronomy and planetary science, a magnetosphere is a region of space surrounding an astronomical object in which charged particles are affected by that object's magnetic field. It is created by a celestial body with an active interior Dynamo ...
), whereas the following events were directed elsewhere in the
Solar System The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Sola ...
and were detected by monitoring spacecraft or other means.


Soft X-ray solar flares

Solar flares are intense localized eruptions of electromagnetic radiation in the Sun's atmosphere. They are often classified based on the peak flux of soft X-rays (SXR) measured by the
GOES The Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES), operated by the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service division, supports weather fo ...
spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit (see ). The following table lists the largest flares in this respect since June 1996, the beginning of solar cycle 23.


See also


References


Further reading

*


External links


The Most Powerful Solar Flares Ever Recorded
(NASA's SpaceWeather.com)
Solar Proton Events Affecting the Earth Environment (1976 - present)
(SWPC)

(Solarstorms.org)

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Solar storms * Solar storm Lists of natural disasters Solar System-related lists