The sun has unleashed the most powerful solar flare since 2017, just days after it spat out another monster explosion. Both outbursts have launched solar storms that will likely hit Earth this weekend and trigger vibrant aurora displays.

Solar flares are currently rampant because the Sun is in the peak of its 11-year activity cycle, letting them off daily since early 2022. Most of the flares are smaller explosions, but we're definitely seeing an uptick in X-class flares, the most powerful category that we can measure.

The Sun unleashed a powerful X9.0 solar flare, the most intense in over 7 years. On October 3, 2024, the Sun emitted an exceptionally powerful X9.0 solar flare, peaking at 8:18 a.m. ET. This event, captured vividly by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory,