"Mike Terry" wrote:

Am I alone in finding e-mails like this almost completely
undecipherable?

Please would sometime explain the following report to me
in simple English:

Sure. Here goes:

It has just been announced that the massive solar X-ray
flare which occurred on 4 November was, at best estimate,
an X28. There is still a small chance this will be revised
by a small amount, but it is now official: We have a new
number 1 X-ray flare for the record books, the most powerful
in recorded observational history.

An X-ray flare is a sudden, rapid, and intense variation in brightness,
with an associated X-ray component (every flare, to my knowledge, will
therefore be an X-ray flare - hence, a solar flare is the same thing as an
X-ray flare). A solar flare occurs when magnetic energy that has built up
in the solar atmosphere is suddenly released. Radiation is emitted across
virtually the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves at the long
wavelength end, through optical emission to x-rays and gamma rays at the
short wavelength end.

When a flare's intensity is determined, it is classified using a letter,
followed by a number, which tells us the specific intensity of the flare.
X-ray flare intensity is measured in units of power per area or Watts per
meters squared. Each letter (A, B, C, M or X) represents a certain numeric
value and the numbers following the letter in the flare classification
multiply that value. The numeric values of the letter classes a

A = 1.0x10E-8 (W m-2)
B = 1.0x10E-7 (W m-2)
C = 1.0x10E-6 (W m-2)
M = 1.0x10E-5 (W m-2)
X = 1.0x10E-4 (W m-2)

(the W m-2 means Watts per square meter)

To determine the exact intensity of the flare you multiply the number in
the x-ray classification of that flare by the value of its class listed
above. For example, the X28 flare had an intensity of at least 28.0x10E-4
Watts per square meter.

This X28 flare is the most intense on record. We began accurate records
during the 1970's. So, there might have (and probably have been) more
intense flares in the past, but this one is the new record holder since the
1970's.

What all does that mean? Well, it was an event that caused complete
shortwave radio blackout on the sunlit side of the Earth, and degraded
somewhat the propagation of shortwave radio signals on the darkside of the
Earth. Thankfully, this one was not directed straight at the Earth, but
off away from the side of the visual sun.

The X28-class flare was quite amazing to view. I have some images from
SOHO at http://prop.hfradio.org/ if you'd like to see them.


73 de Tomas, NW7US (AAR0JA/AAM0EWA)
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