What would happen minute-by-minute if a SUPERFLARE with the force of billions of atomic bombs hit Earth
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While it might look like a tranquil yellow ball from here, the sun is actually a raging inferno of intense magnetic forces and violent explosions. So, although all life on Earth depends on the Sun to survive, it may one day be the thing that destroys us.
![[A superflare would release the energy of several billion atomic bombs and transmit one octillion joules of energy, one followed by 27 zeros. The first wave of X-ray radiation would hit Earth in eight minutes, causing widespread radio blackouts (stock imiage)]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/19/16/93122245-14209193-A_superflare_would_release_the_energy_of_several_billion_atomic_-a-2_1734625773554.jpg)
Scientists have recently warned that Earth is well overdue for a solar 'superflare' - a stellar explosion containing the energy of billions of atomic bombs. When this happens, power grids will be damaged, satellites will fall from orbit, and the destruction of undersea cables could trigger an 'internet apocalypse'.
![[30 minutes after the superflare a radiation storm would hit Earth, exposing astronauts on the International Space Station (pictured) to a deadly dose of radiation]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/19/16/93323195-14209193-image-a-3_1734625826531.jpg)
From the superflare's eruption from the sun, Earth will have just eight minutes before the first wave of radiation slams into the atmosphere. However, the worst will still be yet to come as a vast wave of plasma and magnetic fields follows close behind, causing havoc for the planet's electrical system.
![[With radio blackouts on Earth, astronauts might not have time to receive a warning. But if they can, they would have about 30 minutes to either evacuate or shelter in a shielded area of the station]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/19/16/93323199-14209193-image-a-4_1734625832486.jpg)
The last time Earth was hit by a blast on this scale was during the 1859 Carrington Event, which was strong enough to give electric shocks to telegraph operators and set sheets of paper alight. But experts now say that the planet could soon be hit by a solar flare more than 100 times more powerful and far more devastating.
![[Solar flares can release large amounts of stellar material in events called Coronal Mass Ejections (pictured). The fastest CMEs can hit Earth just 15-16 hours after the solar flare erupts]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/19/16/93122229-14209193-Solar_flares_can_release_large_amounts_of_stellar_material_in_ev-a-5_1734625862917.jpg)
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun's surface which releases a huge amount of stored energy in a very short time. These occur when magnetic fields become 'twisted' above cool patches of the sun's surface called sunspots. Within minutes these tangled fields heat material to many millions of degrees before snapping into a burst of radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to X-rays and gamma rays.
![[As the CME hits the Earth's magnetic field it creates a charge which induces a strong current in power grids on the ground. These surges could cause widespread blackouts around the world]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/19/16/93124409-14209193-Normally_the_Earth_s_magnetic_field_right_protects_us_from_the_S-a-6_1734625872102.jpg)
