X1.4 solar flare

[Charles Bresnahan]

The sun unleashed a powerful X1.4 solar flare in the early hours today (March 30), triggering radio blackouts on Earth and raising potential concerns for NASA's Artemis 2 mission preparations.

The flare peaked at 11:19 p.m. EDT (0319 GMT) according to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center. It caused widespread degradation of high-frequency (HF) radio signals across the sunlit side of Earth at the time of the eruption, affecting southeast Asia and Australia.

The eruption came from active region 4405, a magnetically complex sunspot group now rotating further into Earth's view — meaning any continued activity could have more direct impacts on Earth and Artemis 2 preparations in the coming days. The flare also launched a coronal mass ejection (CME) with a possible Earth-directed component.