GOES satellites detected an M1.4-class solar flare on the Sun today, peaking at 14:09 UTC on October 9, 2026. The flare registered an X-ray flux of 1.4e-5 watts per square meter, placing it in the moderate “M” category — the middle tier of solar flare strength, above the common C-class flares and well below the rare, powerful X-class events.
On the radio-blackout scale, this flare rates roughly R1, the lowest level. That means a brief, minor degradation of high-frequency (shortwave) radio signals is possible on the sunlit side of Earth for up to an hour or so around the peak. This mostly affects aviation, maritime, and amateur radio operators who rely on shortwave communication — not everyday cell phones, internet, or broadcast radio.
What you might notice
Most people will notice nothing at all. GPS, power grids, and satellite TV are unaffected by a flare of this size on their own. If you use a shortwave or ham radio, you may have heard signals fade briefly on the daytime side of the planet near the time of the peak.
The thing worth watching is what comes next. Solar flares sometimes launch a coronal mass ejection (CME) — a cloud of charged particles from the Sun. If one was released by this flare and is aimed at Earth, it could arrive in one to three days and trigger a geomagnetic storm, which can produce auroras farther from the poles than usual and, in stronger cases, stress power grids and satellites. Forecasters will confirm within hours whether a CME is headed our way.
Sensible watch-items: check the Kp index (a 0–9 scale of geomagnetic activity) over the next few days if a CME is confirmed; aurora watchers at higher latitudes may want to keep an eye on the evening sky in 1–3 days; and ham radio operators should expect possible brief shortwave fade-outs if additional flares occur.
This event is a routine part of the Sun’s active cycle and no action is needed for most people. Data for this alert comes from NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center and the GOES satellite network.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will this solar flare knock out my power or internet?
No. An M1.4 flare at R1 level is far too weak to affect power grids or internet service. Only if a strong CME follows and reaches Earth in the coming days would grid operators take precautionary measures — and even then, outages are unlikely.
Is a geomagnetic storm coming?
Possibly, but not confirmed. If this flare launched a CME toward Earth, a geomagnetic storm could arrive in 1–3 days. Forecasters will determine within hours whether a CME was released and whether it's Earth-directed, so watch the Kp index over the next few days.
Could I see the Northern Lights from this?
Not from the flare itself, but if an Earth-directed CME follows and produces a geomagnetic storm, auroras could become visible at lower latitudes than usual in 1–3 days. High-latitude skywatchers should check forecasts in the coming evenings.
I heard static on my shortwave radio — was that the flare?
Very likely, if you were listening on the sunlit side of Earth near 14:09 UTC. M-class flares cause brief high-frequency radio fade-outs lasting up to about an hour, and reception typically returns to normal afterward.
Keep tracking this:
Source: NOAA GOES X-ray Flux
Sky & Solar Conditions at the Time
Moon: New Moon (1% illuminated), in Libra.
Notable planetary angles: Venus square Mars (91°), Moon sextile Mars (57°), Mercury conjunct Venus (3°).
Concurrent space weather: planetary Kp index 4.0; strongest recent solar flare: M1.4-class.
This is a factual snapshot, not a claim of cause and effect – researchers are divided on whether lunar, planetary or solar factors influence seismic or weather activity. It’s included so readers can track the pattern for themselves over time.
