Space watchers have spotted a giant sunspot triple the size of the Earth, expressing concern over its potential to beam medium-class (M-class) solar flares towards the Earth.

NASA heliophysicst C. Alex Young, writing at EarthSky, said that between Sunday and Monday, Sunspot AR3038 more than doubled in size, making it several times wider than Earth's diameter, and continuing to expand in the past 48 hours.

Similar observations were made by Tony Phillips, the author of&nbsp;SpaceWeather.com, saying that he was astonished by the pace at which the sunspot has been growing in the past 24 to 48 hours.

"The fast-growing sunspot has doubled in size in only 24 hours," he said on Wednesday, noting that the magnetic field surrounding it has the potential to blast M-class solar flares&nbsp;toward our planet.

In the past few months, the sun has been particularly sending out many M-class and X-class flares as activity grows in the regular 11-year cycle of sunspots.

Sunspots are black-coloured regions on the surface of the Sun, which are colder than the other areas. They emit powerful bursts of radiation/ solar flares. Sunspots are very cold because they develop over locations with extremely powerful magnetic fields.

Scientists have classified solar flares according to their brightness in the x-ray wavelengths.

X-class flares&nbsp;are big; they are major events that can trigger radio blackouts around the whole world and long-lasting radiation storms in the upper atmosphere.

M-class flares&nbsp;are medium-sized; they generally cause brief radio blackouts that affect Earth's polar regions. Minor radiation storms sometimes follow an M-class flare.

C-class flares&nbsp;are small with few noticeable consequences here on Earth.

Also read |<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/nasa-posts-amazing-photo-of-recent-solar-flare-was-it-harmful-for-us-on-earth-476584">&nbsp;NASA posts amazing photo of recent solar flare. Was this release harmful for us on Earth?</a>

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's&nbsp;Space Weather Prediction Center forecasts&nbsp;a 25 per cent to 30 per cent chance of M-class flares over the next three days and a 5 per cent to 10 per cent chance of X-class flares.&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/scientists-find-evidence-of-an-extreme-solar-tsunami-deep-within-earths-ice-448784">Scientists find evidence of an extreme solar 'tsunami' deep within Earth's ice</a>

NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission is flying very close to the sun periodically to learn more about the origins of sunspots and to better understand the space weather the sun creates.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Space watchers have spotted a giant sunspot triple the size of the Earth, expressing concern over its potential to beam medium-class (M-class) solar flares towards the Earth.

Space watchers have spotted a giant sunspot triple the size of the Earth, expressing concern over its potential to beam medium-class (M-class) solar flares towards the Earth. NASA heliophysicst C. Alex Young, writing at EarthSky, said that between Sunday and Monday, Sunspot AR3038 more than doubled in size, making it several times wider than Earth's diameter, and continuing to expand in the past 48 hours. Similar observations were made by Tony Phillips, the author of SpaceWeather.com, saying that he was astonished by the pace at which the sunspot has been growing in the past 24 to 48 hours. "The fast-growing sunspot has doubled in size in only 24 hours," he said on Wednesday, noting that the magnetic field surrounding it has the potential to blast M-class solar flares toward our planet. In the past few months, the sun has been particularly sending out many M-class and X-class flares as activity grows in the regular 11-year cycle of sunspots. Sunspots are black-coloured regions on the surface of the Sun, which are colder than the other areas. They emit powerful bursts of radiation/ solar flares. Sunspots are very cold because they develop over locations with extremely powerful magnetic fields. Scientists have classified solar flares according to their brightness in the x-ray wavelengths. X-class flares are big; they are major events that can trigger radio blackouts around the whole world and long-lasting radiation storms in the upper atmosphere. M-class flares are medium-sized; they generally cause brief radio blackouts that affect Earth's polar regions. Minor radiation storms sometimes follow an M-class flare. C-class flares are small with few noticeable consequences here on Earth. Also read | NASA posts amazing photo of recent solar flare. Was this release harmful for us on Earth? The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center forecasts a 25 per cent to 30 per cent chance of M-class flares over the next three days and a 5 per cent to 10 per cent chance of X-class flares. Also read | Scientists find evidence of an extreme solar 'tsunami' deep within Earth's ice NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission is flying very close to the sun periodically to learn more about the origins of sunspots and to better understand the space weather the sun creates. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE

Giant sunspot that can emit strong solar flares is facing Earth, experts raise concern

The centre of our planetary system and the source of all energy on Earth, our gigantic Sun recently made its celestial presence felt with what is being called the biggest solar flare in four years. The flare in question erupted from a sunspot called “AR2838” on July 3, the Space Weather Prediction Centre said.

The explosion in AR2838 unleashed the strongest solar flare in four years, which is officially categorised as an X1.5-class explosion&nbsp;and marks the beginning of Sun’s new solar cycle.

The sunspot was situated near the Sun’s northwestern limb and is expected to shift to the far side of the Sun over the next few weeks. If the sunspot can stand its ground (pun intended), it may be visible to Earthlings again in the end of July.&nbsp;

The solar flare’s effects were felt on Earth including a shortwave radio blackout over the Atlantic Ocean. Solar flares are notorious for damaging equipment and disrupting electrical transmissions on Earth. And this flare was no different, for it produced a radio burst, a surge of electrical current, a deflection of local magnetic fields, and ionospheric disturbance.

Reports suggest that the flare led to the ionisation of the Earth’s atmosphere’s top-most layer, which in turn caused currents flowing in between 60-100 kilometres above Earth’s surface. As a result, the Earth’s polar magnetic field was altered.

What are solar flares?

A solar flare is a rapid and intense explosion on the Sun’s surface which happens in the aftermath of massive amounts of energy which is stored in magnetic fields being released suddenly.

As the explosion happens, radiation is released into the universe, directly affecting the planets in our solar system. These radiations comprise of radio waves, x-rays, and gamma rays.

NASA claims that the energy released by this explosion is equivalent to millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs going off at the same time. Even then, it constitutes just one-tenth of the Sun’s total energy.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/orphan-cloud-bigger-than-milky-way-found-in-no-galaxys-land-by-scientists-395982" hreflang="en">'Orphan cloud' bigger than Milky Way found in 'no-galaxy's land' by scientists</a>

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/science/sun-has-awoken-and-sent-solar-storms-earths-way-what-are-the-dangers-387312" hreflang="en">Sun has awoken and sent solar storms Earth's way. What are the dangers?</a>

The centre of our planetary system and the source of all energy on Earth, our gigantic Sun recently made its celestial presence felt with what is being called the biggest solar flare in four years.

The centre of our planetary system and the source of all energy on Earth, our gigantic Sun recently made its celestial presence felt with what is being called the biggest solar flare in four years. The flare in question erupted from a sunspot called “AR2838” on July 3, the Space Weather Prediction Centre said. The explosion in AR2838 unleashed the strongest solar flare in four years, which is officially categorised as an X1.5-class explosion and marks the beginning of Sun’s new solar cycle. The sunspot was situated near the Sun’s northwestern limb and is expected to shift to the far side of the Sun over the next few weeks. If the sunspot can stand its ground (pun intended), it may be visible to Earthlings again in the end of July. The solar flare’s effects were felt on Earth including a shortwave radio blackout over the Atlantic Ocean. Solar flares are notorious for damaging equipment and disrupting electrical transmissions on Earth. And this flare was no different, for it produced a radio burst, a surge of electrical current, a deflection of local magnetic fields, and ionospheric disturbance. Reports suggest that the flare led to the ionisation of the Earth’s atmosphere’s top-most layer, which in turn caused currents flowing in between 60-100 kilometres above Earth’s surface. As a result, the Earth’s polar magnetic field was altered. What are solar flares? A solar flare is a rapid and intense explosion on the Sun’s surface which happens in the aftermath of massive amounts of energy which is stored in magnetic fields being released suddenly. As the explosion happens, radiation is released into the universe, directly affecting the planets in our solar system. These radiations comprise of radio waves, x-rays, and gamma rays. NASA claims that the energy released by this explosion is equivalent to millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs going off at the same time. Even then, it constitutes just one-tenth of the Sun’s total energy. Also read: 'Orphan cloud' bigger than Milky Way found in 'no-galaxy's land' by scientists Also read: Sun has awoken and sent solar storms Earth's way. What are the dangers?

Explosion on Sun equivalent to millions of hydrogen bombs causes biggest solar flare in 4 years

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Giant sunspot that can emit strong solar flares is facing Earth, experts raise concern

Explosion on Sun equivalent to millions of hydrogen bombs causes biggest solar flare in 4 years