X1.1 solar flare
Sunday, 17 April 2022 18:29 UTC
Two major sunspot regions (2993 and 2994) have now rotated onto the earth-facing solar disk. These regions were already very active on the far side and it was no secret that there was something interesting on the way. It is still hard to see how complex these regions are but considering the numerous C and M-class flares that we had already, we know there is potential. That potential came to light this morning at 03:34 UTC.
An X1.1 solar flare (R3-strong) was observed this morning and it came from sunspot region 2994. This is the third strongest solar flare of the current Solar Cycle 24 thus far. A partial halo coronal mass ejection was released into space but it is not expected to arrive at Earth. These two regions remain active with C-class activity and should be monitored for further flaring activity in the days ahead as they rotate into a more favorable earth-facing position.
An X1.1 solar flare was observed this morning at 03:34 UTC from sunspot region 2994 at the north-east-limb. This is the third strongest solar flare of the current cycle.
— SpaceWeatherLive (@_SpaceWeather_) April 17, 2022
A partial halo coronal mass ejection was released into space but it is not expected to arrive at Earth. pic.twitter.com/U5r6RO7Vp1
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Space weather facts
| Last X-flare | 2025/12/01 | X1.9 |
| Last M-flare | 2025/12/04 | M6.0 |
| Last geomagnetic storm | 2025/12/04 | Kp5 (G1) |
| Spotless days | |
|---|---|
| Last spotless day | 2022/06/08 |
| Monthly mean Sunspot Number | |
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| November 2025 | 91.8 -22.8 |
| December 2025 | 175.4 +83.6 |
| Last 30 days | 107.3 +14.6 |