Long-duration X2.2 solar flare erupts from Region 3229, full halo CME produced
Image credit: NASA/SDO AIA 304, NASA/ESA LASCO C2 and C3, Helioviewer, The Watchers
A long-duration solar flare measuring X2.2 at its peak erupted from AR 3229 (beta) at 20:16 UTC on February 17, 2023. The event started at 19:38 and ended at 20:50 UTC. A full halo Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) was produced and it appears there is an Earth-directed component. The estimated time of arrival is Monday, February 20.
- This is the strongest solar flare since X2.2 on April 20, 2022
- It is also the 5th X-class solar flare since the start of the year, and the first with an Earth-directed component
A Type II Radio Emission with an estimated velocity of 2 407 km/s was detected at 19:57 UTC, indicating a coronal mass ejection is associated with a flare event.
In addition, a 10cm Radio Burst lasting 22 minutes and with a peak flux of 550 sfu was associated with this event. A 10cm radio burst indicates that the electromagnetic burst associated with a solar flare at the 10cm wavelength was double or greater than the initial 10cm radio background. This can be indicative of significant radio noise in association with a solar flare. This noise is generally short-lived but can cause interference for sensitive receivers including radar, GPS, and satellite communications.
Radio frequencies were forecast to be most degraded over the Pacific Ocean, western North America, Central America, and western South America at the time of the flare.
A subsequent CME signature was observed in STEREO-A COR2 imagery beginning at 20:23 UTC and soon after in LASCO C2 and C3 imagery, showing a full halo CME. There appears to be an Earth-directed component.
The estimated arrival to Earth is around February 20.
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
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