Massive solar X-ray flare headed for earth....

[Dr Mordrid]

Ejected at 1100 UT Tuesday (6 a.m. US EST). It's now 11 times the size of Earth and this time it's not a glancing blow.

The large flares last weak maxed out at an X-ray level of X-2.

This one is an X-17

Full story

X-ray image

The radiation has already arrived (takes just 8 minutes) but the arrival time for the charged particles is 1700 UT Wednesday (noon US EST). Huge aurora are anticipated.

The guys in the ISS had better put on their lead jock straps.....

Dr. Mordrid

[Jon P. Inghram]

Those were incorrect estimates, the ACE satellite just got hit by it, should be here in an hour or less. So far the magnetic field the plasma is dragging with it is oriented to our north, which would tend to suppress any severe geomagnetic effects.

http://www.sec.noaa.gov/ace/

[KvHagedorn]

If the thing is pointed right at us, I certainly don't want to be outside around noon.. At this time of year it will be worst just south of the equator, and if it's hitting right now, that puts Indonesia front and center for the arrival. It would be interesting to get news reports out of there right now.

[Greebe]

The matter stream volocity is ~5 million mph (8 million kmh)!

Glad this isn't going to be as bad as the "Perfect Storm" event back in the mid 1800's, lets hope we never see one of those again.

[Technoid]

Originally posted by Greebe
The matter stream volocity is ~5 million mph (8 million kmh)!

Glad this isn't going to be as bad as the "Perfect Storm" event back in the mid 1800's, lets hope we never see one of those again.

Please elaborate

[The PIT]

Well nothing happened much in 1800's bar the mini ice age.

[Dr Mordrid]

Excerpt from NASA article;

In scientific circles where solar flares, magnetic storms and other unique solar events are discussed, the occurrences of September 1-2, 1859, are the star stuff of legend. Even 144 years ago, many of Earth's inhabitants realized something momentous had just occurred. Within hours, telegraph wires in both the United States and Europe spontaneously shorted out, causing numerous fires, while the Northern Lights, solar-induced phenomena more closely associated with regions near Earth's North Pole, were documented as far south as Rome, Havana and Hawaii, with similar effects at the South Pole.

In point of fact many telegraph operators found they could disconnect their batteries and still send messages using just the current induced in the lines by the CME's by-products.

Another article....

And some people wonder why I call the Sun a "flare star"

Dr. Mordrid

[The PIT]

I guess new york will going home in the dark again any day soon if this keeps up.

[Jon P. Inghram]

Too bad it was cloudy this morning, looks like people in OK, TX, and MO got to see 'em pretty good.

[The PIT]

The only time I could have seen the Northern Lights I was asleep. My Sister and Brother in law didn't bother to wake me up.

[Jon P. Inghram]

The sun just fired of another X class flare (well, 8 minutes ago ), looking to be about X10. And it's aimed right at us too. Waiting on SOHO to see if it blew another CME at us (probably did.)

[The PIT]

That means the forecast will be wrong and there will now be heavy rain the rest of night just to make sure theres no northern lights visable.

[cjolley]

WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!
chuck

[The PIT]

Originally posted by cjolley
WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!
chuck

Well speak for yourself I'm gonna live forever.

[ALBPM]

Originally posted by cjolley
WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!
chuck

[edit] Forgot bold, thanks for reminding me Pit. [/edit]

Pass it on....LOL