William Rabsey Mrs.
McClellan
February 25, 2014 C
block
Kramer, Miriam. "Sun Unleashes Monster Solar Flare, Biggest of 2014." Fox News. FOX News Network, 25 Feb. 2014. Web. 25 Feb. 2014.
On
Monday the sun emitted the largest solar flare of the year. It was a X4.9-class
solar flare and it erupted from an active sunspot, named AR1990. Footage of
this flare was recorded from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory. This solar
flare could have been potentially dangerous if it were pointed at Earth, and
would possibly cause a geomagnetic storm. Many experts say that strong solar
flares can harm satellites that orbit earth. Currently the sun is in an active
phase of the solar cycle which can produce
These
solar flares can be used to help humans learn more about the sun and what it is
capable of. This could help us prepare for any future solar flare that is aimed
towards Earth. When the sun flare is aimed toward the earth it could create destructive
geomagnetic storms as well as harm astronauts and satellites orbiting Earth. For
example last January a solar flare delayed the launch of a private cargo ship
to the international space station. I
chose this article because it is related to the solar system and what we are
currently learning in class. I am also deeply fascinated with astronomy and
natural occurrences in outer space.
I
felt that the article was a bit confusing upon first inspection. The article
neglected to explain what solar flares are let alone what X class solar flares
are. It also did not explain the effects of a geomagnetic storm. However the
article did provide great visuals such as pictures and a video of the solar
flare. It also gave quotes and many expert opinions. Providing examples of the
power of solar flares greatly helped us understand their capability.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWhen I began to read your article, I was intrigued that these solar flares can be potentionalty dangerous to us. I learned that geomagnetic storms are created due to this, and that we can learn a great deal about the sun. You gave great information pertaining to how these flares can be dangerous not only to regular citizens, but astronauts, as well damaging satellites. I think if you could look to see sun flares this big have always been a big problem or just a recent phenomenon.
DeleteI really enjoyed how were able to include specific details about the recent solar flare. Giving details like the class of the flare, the sunspot it originated from, and the observatory that recorded the event helped to give the rest of the review context. I also liked how you discussed what would happen if one of these solar flares were to hit Earth. One more thing that helped me understand your review was how you linked the story to a previous event that relates to the reader. By saying that a solar flare delayed that launch of a shipment to the ISS you made the reader think about the consequences of solar flares in the future. One thing I was impressed by was the fact that solar flare can cause geomagnetic storms. These solar flares can cause aurorae when they interact with Earth’s magnetosphere. A fact that really fascinated me was the fact that the solar flare could potentially harm astronauts. I wonder what effect the flare would have on the human body. One thing that would have made your review stronger is if you used outside info to elaborate on X-class flares and the AR1990 sunspot. After reading your review you said that the article did not explain what those were, but your review would have felt much more informative if you explained what these flares and sunspots were.
ReplyDeleteWow, great information. The flow of everything and how you went into details with the class of the flare and where it was "created" from. I also liked how your article was similar to what we are learning in class. What interested me was the fact of how this event is potentially dangerous. Another thing is how we can somewhat now be prepared for another solar flare because of this recent one where we can learn from it and the damage that would be done to earth itself. I wasn't even aware that in January we had a solar flare. Did we witness a geomagnetic storm? I myself do not know what that is but i am eager to learn. One thing that could have made you report even better was if you described what a solar flare is, or how many of them have we gotten.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading about your article, I cant believe that we were almost in danger from the sun even though the sun is incredibly far away. I liked how you included very specific details about your article it really showed that you took a lot of time with this assignment and read the article thoroughly. I didn't know what solar flares could do like create geometric storms or potentially be dangerous to Earth. I did not know that in January a solar flare delayed a cargo shipment to the international space station. There were many things that worked in this summary. But I wish you could have gone into more depth about what the classes are for solar flares. Also it would have been great to know when was the last dangerous solar flare and how big was it. Other than that it was great to read about solar flares.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised, and a bit frightened to learn that the sun is at an active phase of it’s solar system cycle, producing potentially dangerous solar flares. I also did not know that the flares from the sun, if pointed towards earth, could cause damage such as geomagnetic storms. Though I was curious as to what exactly a geomagnetic storm is, I think it would have helped if you elaborated on that, though I see in your final paragraph that the article did not have that information. I think you did a great job of explaining how your article is relevant to us because it can help professionals learn more about the sun. I liked how you elaborated on this further by using the supporting evidence of the delay of the cargo ship launch to the international space station. I really appreciated your explanation of why you chose the article; I thought it was more sentimental and personal than what is generally written. It was to learn that there was footage recorded of the actual solar flares. This article really got me thinking about how quickly something we think is so normal as the sun, could end life as we know it so simply.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lain's critiques. This is a very interesting topic, and since we didn't learn much about the Sun in class, there are a lot of terms here the class may not know, such as "solar flare," "active phase," "solar cycle," "geomagnetic storms." You should know your audience and define these terms for your classmates. If the author failed to define them or explain them in the article (perhaps because they are writing for a more astronomy-literate audience?) then you should take the time to look up some of these terms yourself and demonstrate your outside research by defining them for your readers.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I disagree with Lain about including why you chose the article. I thought the sentimentality didn't fit with the tone of the report, and made it seem less professional.
I think it is important to note that solar flares are fairly common and we monitor them closely. I don't think one of these things could kill all human life, however I believe they have the potential to disrupt satellites (effectively messing up our GPS and other satellite based technology) and can be dangerous to astronauts in space.
However, a coronal mass ejection does have the potential to wipe out all our electronics on earth. To read more about this, check out the following:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/solar-flare-electronics1.htm