NASA has captured a powerful X2.2 solar flare that erupted from the sun on Feb. 17, causing temporary blackouts in some parts of the world.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which constantly watches the sun, observed the flare—which is an intense eruption of electromagnetic radiation in the sun’s atmosphere—and said it peaked at 3:16 p.m. EST.
“This flare is classified as an X2.2 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength,” NASA said.
On Twitter, the space agency shared a video of the flare, adding that there were 36 notable solar flares, 28 coronal mass ejections (CME), and no geomagnetic storms over the past week. The X-class solar flare is the most powerful kind of flare, the agency said….