Egyptian expert: The power of the flares is equivalent to one billion hydrogen bombs

Solar flares

An Egyptian expert warned of solar flares with heat reaching Earth on Friday and Saturday, which could affect humans, satellites, the internet, and other vital devices.

Dr. Abbas Sharaqi, professor of geology and water resources at Cairo University, told Al Arabiya.net and Al Hadath.net that solar flares have increased during the current 25th solar cycle, which lasts 11 years and began in 2019.

Equivalent to one billion hydrogen bombs!

Dr. Sharaqi confirmed that these flares will peak in the middle of 2024-2025. Emissions are measured on five levels (A, B, C, M, X), on a logarithmic scale similar to earthquakes, with B being ten times stronger than A, C being one hundred times stronger than A, and X being equivalent to one billion hydrogen bombs.

The Egyptian expert added that on Tuesday, at 8 pm Cairo time, a solar flare with a magnitude of "X"—equivalent to one billion hydrogen bombs—was observed on the surface of the sun. Four other unusual flares were also observed on Wednesday, including the most powerful flare this year with a magnitude of "X2.7" and three "M" flares.

Dr. Abbas Sharaqi confirmed that these flares cause the emission of solar mass ejections (CMEs) that reach Earth at an average speed of 1,000 km/s. This means they reach the Earth's surface after one to several days, on a journey of 150 million km, the distance between the sun and Earth. Therefore, they will arrive on Friday. Yesterday's strong flares led to a rise in temperatures on Saturday to approximately 45 degrees Celsius, and may extend to Sunday at a relatively lower degree. Their continuation depends on the solar flares.

Interference with Devices and Power Plants

The Egyptian expert also warned of the effects of severe solar flares, stressing that they could lead to interference with electronic devices, the possibility of some satellites falling, and disruption of wireless communications on Earth. They could also affect navigation devices on aircraft and ships, power plant equipment, computers and servers, and thus impact the internet and some medical devices.

As for humans, this phenomenon could cause a number of other negative side effects related to mood, anxiety, hormonal activity, and other issues. It is worth noting that last December, some telecommunications services were affected, and a number of users of some social media applications experienced a disruption for several hours before services returned to normal.

Meta services (Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) were also disrupted, as were OpenAI's ChatGPT application, for a period of up to four hours before service was restored. Reports indicated that the solar storm may have been the cause of the outage felt by some internet users in several countries around the world.