Sun news: Prominences blaze on the solar horizons

Sun news May 22: Prominences blaze on the solar horizons

(11 UTC to 11 UTC)

Today’s top story: While activity on the Earth-facing solar disk has significantly quietened over the past day, the solar horizons have come alive. Towering, fiery prominences – long ropes of solar material and magnetic fields – have been dancing on both the east and west limbs (edges). The prominence on the western horizon is rotating out of view, while the one on the eastern limb could signal that more active regions are poised to rotate into view in the next day or two. Stay tuned.

• Flare activity has dropped to low. Over the past day, our star produced one C (common) and five B (weak) flares. Flare production dropped to six over the past 24 hours, compared to 16 flares in the day before. There are three newcomer active regions on the solar disk: AR4094 in the northeast, AR4095 in the southwest quadrant close to the limb, and AR4096, which has rotated into view from the east. The largest event was a C2.6 flare at 18:07 UTC on May 21 from active region AR4095.
• The sun has seven numbered active regions on the Earth-facing side. The lead flare producer was the newly numbered active region AR4095, firing the C flare and three Bs. AR4087 lost its delta magnetic configuration. All seven active regions show either simple alpha or beta configurations.
• Blasts from the sun? No Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery.
• Solar wind: The solar wind averaged at ~600 km/s (1,342,000 mph), with peaks around 650 km/s (1,454,000 mph) early today. At the time of this writing (11 UTC on May 22), the solar wind is 549 km/s (1,228,000 mph). The total interplanetary magnetic field has been at a low level. The Bz component (north-south orientation) was mostly northward. At the moment of this writing it is northward. A southward Bz is more favorable for auroras.
• Geomagnetic activity: Earth’s geomagnetic field has been quiet (Kp 2-3).

 What’s ahead? Sun-Earth forecast

• Moderate-to-low flare activity is expected in the coming day. The chance for M (moderate) flares is 25% and the chance for X (strong) flares is 5%.
• Geomagnetic activity forecast: At the time of this writing (11 UTC on May 22), the geomagnetic field is quiet (Kp 2). Quiet-to-unsettled conditions may continue for the rest of today. A massive coronal hole is rotating into a geoeffective position, and its fast solar wind stream is expected to reach Earth in the coming days. This follows several days of ongoing elevated solar wind conditions. Activity is expected to ramp up again on May 23, when a glancing blow from a coronal mass ejection (CME) that left the sun on May 19 could combine with the coronal hole high-speed stream (CH HSS) to boost geomagnetic activity. Unsettled-to-active conditions are expected, with a slight chance for a G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm.

Sun news May 21: Promising region wakes up, solar wind intensifies

(11 UTC to 11 UTC)

After a period of relative quiet, promising sunspot region AR4087 briefly snapped back to life with an M1.2 flare at 1 UTC on May 21, reminding us it still has strong flare potential as it moves toward the western horizon. This flare has pushed solar activity into the moderate range, interrupting a stretch of mostly C-class activity. We also observed an increase in solar wind activity over the past day. Earth continues to feel the effects of a coronal hole’s high speed stream (CH HSS), which caused speeds to rise from ~500 km/s to near 600 km/s over the past 24 hours. And activity could ramp up again on May 23, when a glancing CME impact and a co-rotating interaction region (CIR) – a powerful knot of solar winds – are expected to arrive.

• Flare activity has jumped to a moderate level due to an isolated M (moderate) flare. Flare numbers increased too: over the past 24 hours the sun released 16 flares, compared to the previous day’s nine flares. The sun produced the aforementioned M, eight Cs and seven B flares. The largest event was an M1.2 flare at 0:08 UTC on May 21 from active region AR4087. The blast caused an R1 (minor) radio blackout over the Pacific Ocean west of Hawaii.
• The sun has five numbered active regions on its Earth-facing side. The lead flare producer was the newly labelled active region AR4093 with ten flares. AR4087 retained its promising beta-delta magnetic configuration, but it’s approaching the western limb (edge).
• Blasts from the sun? No Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery.
• Solar wind: The solar wind speed increased from ~460 km/s (1,028,990 mph) late yesterday to a peak of 650 km/s (1,454,000 mph) early today. At the time of this writing (11 UTC on May 21), the solar wind speed is 617 km/s (1,380,000 mph). The total interplanetary magnetic field has been at a low level. The Bz component (north-south orientation) oscillated between the northward and southward direction. At the moment of this writing it is northward. A southward Bz is more favorable for auroras.
• Geomagnetic activity: Earth’s geomagnetic field has been quiet for most part (Kp = 2-3) with a peak of Kp = 4 at 0 UTC on May 21.

Sun news May 20: Solar wind could surge today

(11 UTC to 11 UTC)

Earth’s magnetic field remained quiet-to-unsettled over the past day, as high-speed solar wind from a coronal hole wanes. But the solar wind speeds are still elevated enough to keep Earth’s magnetosphere on edge. And another surge in the solar wind is possible later today or tomorrow if Earth connects with the fast flow from a large coronal hole in the sun’s southern hemisphere. This could result in periods of active geomagnetic conditions (Kp = 4). At the same time, a newly active sunspot region just beyond the northeast limb is showing signs of strength. As it rotates into view, it could become a significant driver of solar activity in the days ahead. With strong solar wind still in play and fresh flare potential emerging, there’s a good chance for auroral excitement this week. Stay tuned!

• Flare activity dropped to a low level with the production of only C (common) and B (weak) flares. Over the past day the sun released nine flares: three Cs and six B flares. The largest event was a C5.3 flare at 5:54 UTC on May 20 from an as-yet-unnumbered active region in the southeast.
• The sun has four numbered active regions on its Earth-facing solar disk. Once again, the lead flare producer of the period was an unnumbered region, this time on the southeast limb. AR4087 lost its gamma magnetic configuration and is now showing a beta-delta complexity. That means it’s still capable of strong flaring, although it remained stable with no flare production over the past 24 hours. Is it building up to something? Meanwhile, the other three sunspot regions on the Earth-facing sun have alpha or beta configurations, indicating lower flare potential.
• Blasts from the sun? A filament eruption hurled plasma into space. The event occurred around 1 UTC on May 19. The resulting coronal mass ejection (CME) may glance Earth on May 23. No other Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery over the past 24 hours.
• Solar wind: The solar wind speed reduced to ~460 km/s (1,028,990 mph) over the past 24 hours with peaks in the range of 580 km/s (1,297,000 mph). At the time of this writing (11 UTC on May 20), the solar wind speed is 499 km/s (1,116,000 mph). The total interplanetary magnetic field was at a low level. The Bz component (north-south orientation) oscillated between the northward and southward direction. A southward Bz is more favorable for auroras.
• Geomagnetic activity: Earth’s geomagnetic field has been between quiet and unsettled conditions (Kp = 2-3).

Sun news May 19: Surprise! M flare erupts from unseen sunspot

(11 UTC to 11 UTC)

An unseen and unnumbered sunspot region just over the sun’s northeast horizon fired off an M3.2 (moderate) solar flare early this morning, catching solar forecasters off guard. The flare triggered a dramatic movement of coronal field lines – strands of plasma tracing powerful magnetic fields in the sun’s upper atmosphere – suggesting the possible ejection of solar material. Analysis is underway to assess whether a coronal mass ejection (CME) was indeed launched, and if any of that sun-stuff is heading toward Earth. Stay tuned as we keep a close watch on this stealthy sunspot!

• Flare activity jumped up to a moderate level thanks to the M3.2 flare from the region over the northeast limb. This flare, fired at 8:13 UTC on May 19, caused an R1 (minor) radio blackout over the Arabian Peninsula. The rest of the nine total flares included three B flares and five C flares.
• The sun has five numbered active regions on the Earth-facing solar disk. A new region, AR4092, emerged in the southeast. The lead flare producer was the unnumbered region on the northeast limb. AR4087 retained its beta-gamma-delta magnetic configuration, indicating a strong flaring potential, although it didn’t live up to this potential over the past day. Is it saving itself for a big blast? Meanwhile, the other three sunspot regions on the Earth-facing sun have alpha or beta configurations, indicating lower flare potential.
• Blasts from the sun? Two filament eruptions were observed late in the evening on May 18. Scientists are awaiting satellite imagery to assess potential CME development. No other Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery over the past 24 hours.
• Solar wind: The solar wind speed mostly ranged from 600-650 km/s (1,342,000 – 1,454,000 mph) over the past 24 hours, gradually decreasing after peaking at 835 km/s (1,868,000 mph). At the time of this writing (11 UTC on May 19), the solar wind speed is 549 km/s (1,228,000 mph). The total interplanetary magnetic field was at a low level. The Bz component (north-south orientation) oscillated between the northward and southward direction. A southward Bz is more favorable for auroras.
• Geomagnetic activity: Earth’s geomagnetic field was between quiet and active conditions (Kp = 2-4).

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Bottom line: Sun news May 22, 2025. Prominences are dancing on the limb during a drop in flare activity. Meanwhile, a coronal hole’s high-speed solar wind will soon buffet Earth.

Find archived versions of past days’ sun news here.