Solar storm: Stunning photos show flares erupt from our sun

Posted 11:18 AM, August 26, 2014, by , Updated at 11:19AM, August 26, 2014
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(PIX11) – Looks like the sun had an especially busy weekend.

Scientists have released stunning photos of the latest flares to erupt on our sun.

Powerful bursts of radiation flew from the left side of our closest star Sunday during a storm that peaked about 8:16 a.m. ET.

While the images are dramatic, there’s no need to worry about the solar storm hurting us on Earth.

Harmful radiation emitted by solar flares can’t penetrate our atmosphere, but when the flares are intense enough, they can disturb the layer of the atmosphere where GPS and communication signals travel, NASA said.

The weekend’s solar flare was classified as an M5. That class of flares is 10 times less powerful than the most intense flares, dubbed X-class.

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