The eruption released a surge of ionizing radiation, magnetic energy, and heat that could impact technology on Earth. Dr. Tamitha Skov, a space weather physicist, noted the flare’s strongest effects were felt in the western hemisphere, impacting regions such as the US West Coast, Alaska, eastern Russia, the Asia-Pacific area, and possibly New Zealand. The flare instantly caused a shortwave radio blackout over the Pacific Ocean, with ham radio operators in Hawaii experiencing a sudden loss of signal.

NASA and other space weather organizations are now keeping a close watch on sunspot region 4114, where the flare originated. Sunspots are areas cooler than the rest of the surface. Sunspot 4114 is projected to stay active over the next few days, prompting scientists to caution that another major flare could occur as soon as today. The SpaceWeather.com team mentioned, “Another flare might be imminent today. Sunspot 4114 is sizable and unstable, featuring a ‘delta-class’ magnetic field that holds energy for strong eruptions.”

A delta-class magnetic field is like a pressure cooker of magnetic energy on the sun, and it is often a warning sign that a big solar flare is to come. Officials said in a Wednesday update that the solar flare likely came with a huge burst of charged solar particles, known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), which will take about 15 to 72 hours to reach Earth.

A G1 geomagnetic storm watch has been issued for Friday, which is the least powerful on the scale of five. However, it has the potential to cause minor fluctuations in power grids, slight impacts on satellite operations and make the aurora borealis visible at high latitudes.

In May, experts revealed they conducted an extreme space weather scenario and found Earth may not survive. They conducted a ‘solar storm emergency drill’, simulating what would happen if a major geomagnetic storm hit our planet.

Results showed power grids failed, blackouts were triggered and communication broke down across the US. The exercise ran four simulations of geomagnetic storms of different severities. One scenario included a ‘solar superstorm’, strong enough to cause an ‘internet apocalypse,’ resulting in power grid disruptions across the entire US, with the eastern seaboard experiencing blackouts, which lasted for weeks.

Not only were power grids impacted, but railways and pipelines were also knocked offline, causing mass disruptions of travel and dramatic price increases of gas. Scientists are now calling for a whole-of-government planning approach, arguing it will be critical for protecting America from cosmic disaster. That would include deploying more satellites to monitor space weather, enhancing real-time data collection to improve forecasting models and providing earlier warnings.