The Sun has launched three coronal mass ejections from active sunspot AR4274; two arrived on the night of Nov. 11, producing auroras as far south as Florida and Mexico. Scientists recorded an X5.1 flare, and a third, more powerful CME is expected to arrive today, possibly intensifying geomagnetic storms. These events can disrupt GPS, satellites, radio communications, and power grids. Astronomers also reported the first solid detection of a CME from a red dwarf 40 light‑years away, whose magnetic field is ~300× stronger and whose CME traveled at ~1,500 miles/second.
Solar Storms Unleashed: Three CMEs Hit Earth — Third and Strongest Expected Today
The Sun has launched three coronal mass ejections from active sunspot AR4274; two arrived on the night of Nov. 11, producing auroras as far south as Florida and Mexico. Scientists recorded an X5.1 flare, and a third, more powerful CME is expected to arrive today, possibly intensifying geomagnetic storms. These events can disrupt GPS, satellites, radio communications, and power grids. Astronomers also reported the first solid detection of a CME from a red dwarf 40 light‑years away, whose magnetic field is ~300× stronger and whose CME traveled at ~1,500 miles/second.
11:34 AM, 11/13/2025Science
Solar storms from active sunspot AR4274 are affecting Earth
Since Sunday, the Sun has hurled three large coronal mass ejections (CMEs) — massive blobs of plasma twisted with magnetic fields — toward Earth. These eruptions, often following solar flares, can travel at extraordinary speeds; typical solar CMEs exceed 1 million miles per hour.
Powerful flare and arriving storms. Yesterday researchers recorded the strongest solar flare of the year, an X5.1 event, associated with these eruptions. Two of the three CMEs arrived during the night of Nov. 11 and sparked spectacular auroras visible as far south as Florida and Mexico. The third and most energetic CME is forecast to arrive today and could trigger an even stronger geomagnetic storm than the one we just experienced.
Impacts on technology and communications. All of the activity traces back to sunspot AR4274, currently facing Earth. When high-energy solar particles interact with Earth’s magnetosphere, they follow magnetic field lines down into the upper atmosphere and collide with atoms, producing auroras. Those same particles and induced currents can disrupt GPS signals, damage satellite electronics, cause radio blackouts (recently reported across Europe and Africa), and stress electrical power systems.
Why now? We are in a relatively active phase of the approximately 11-year solar cycle. At the cycle’s peak the Sun’s magnetic fields become more chaotic and pole reversals occur, increasing the frequency and intensity of CMEs. Astronomers say the current cycle’s peak may have passed last year, or we may still be experiencing its height now.
Beyond our Sun: a stellar CME detected. For the first time, astronomers have found robust evidence of a coronal mass ejection from another star: a red dwarf about 40 light-years away produced a brief, intense radio burst consistent with a CME. That star is smaller and cooler than the Sun but has a magnetic field roughly 300 times stronger; its CME appears to have raced through space at about 1,500 miles per second (roughly 5.4 million mph), far faster than most CMEs we observe from the Sun. This suggests that space weather around small, highly magnetic stars can be far more extreme than what we experience here.
Practical note: If you work with satellites, aviation, high-frequency communications, or critical infrastructure, monitor official space weather alerts from agencies such as NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center or ESA.