At 5:03:06 am UT time (about 11:03 pm EST and 10:03 pm MST, Solar Region AR 4298 released an X1.1 solar flare. I have covered that and the impact to earth over at Eadsy Astronomy LINK.
I'll share the Flare Classification Scale here. It is over on EadsyAstronomy with more of an explanation.
Flare Classification (Weakest to Strongest)
A-Class: Weakest, barely above background.
B-Class: 10x stronger than A.
C-Class: 10x stronger than B; minor effects.
M-Class: 10x stronger than C; can cause polar radio blackouts, minor radiation storms.
X-Class: 10x stronger than M; the strongest class, potentially causing long-lasting radiation storms, satellite disruption, and grid issues.
I did some solar observing and sketching today and it's a great time IF you have a solar telescope to be observing the Sun! AR 4294-4296, 4298 and 4299 were easily observed. Also since AR 4299 released a M8.1 flare on Saturday, December 6th that should reach earth midday on December 9th. It could mean good Aurura hunting on Tuesday night.
