NASA has released footage of the largest sunspot in 24 years. According to scientists, during the observation period, five flares of the highest class occurred in it, which caused interruptions in the operation of instruments on Earth.
NASA astronomers have presented footage of a huge sunspot that appeared on the surface of the star between October 19-27. This region was named AR12192.
Sunspots are dark areas on the surface of a luminary, sometimes visible to the naked eye. They are places where powerful magnetic fields enter the photosphere, and their temperature is about 1500 degrees lower than that of the surrounding areas. The number and size of spots on the Sun is one of the main indicators of a star's activity.
In the video footage presented, the dark area reached almost 130 thousand kilometers in cross section. It was about the size of Jupiter, or 14 times the size of Earth. According to astronomers, the last time they had to observe such a large spot was only in 1990.
NASA specialists filmed the phenomenon with several telescopes in different light spectra. According to them, during the observation period, there were five X-class flares on the spot, the strongest in intensity.
Astronomers note that there were no coronal mass ejections characteristic of bursts of such high power. However, solar activity has taken its toll on our planet, causing interruptions in radio, satellites and navigation equipment.