Solar Flare calms a quarter of the globe

Previously, people were used to the idea that radio communication is not always perfect. The AM radio had crackles and pops and if you were to make a call with a radiotelephone you would expect it to be unreliable and possibly even impossible at some point. Modern technology, satellites and a host of other things have changed and now radio is generally super reliable and high fidelity. Usually. However, a 7.9 magnitude solar flare this week reminded radio users in Africa and the Middle East that radio won't always go through. At least for about an hour.

This happened around 10:00 GMT when this part of the world was facing the sun. Apparently a coronal mass ejection accompanied the eruption, so other electromagnetic disturbances may be in progress.

The culprit appears to be an unusually active sunspot that should soon disappear. Interestingly, there is also a coronal hole in the sun where the solar wind is blowing at a higher rate than usual. Want to keep up to date with solar weather? There is a website for that.

We have already pointed out that we are ill-prepared for technological failures due to solar activity, even on the electricity grid. The last time this happened, we weren't relying on the radio so much.

Image/Video via Helioviewer.org