More geomagnetic storms remain likely Monday as the sun continues to emit Class X flares.

THE the strongest geomagnetic storm in more than 20 years hit Earth on Friday, with explosions of plasma and magnetic fields causing radio blackouts and the northern Lights spread across southern United States On Monday, officials warned that the storms are not yet over.

NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center said Monday morning that a G3, or “strong,” geomagnetic storm warning was in effect until 2 a.m. ET. Although stronger storms are no longer likely and conditions are expected to “gradually ease” throughout the day, the center said in its forecast that moderate to strong geomagnetic storms are “likely” on Monday, as are minor storms Tuesday.

The center also said “solar activity is expected to be at high levels” with the possibility of more solar flares, or bursts of electromagnetic radiation from the sun.

The update came as another X-class solar flare was recorded. Class X flares are the most powerful class of these solar bursts, and the last one was recorded as “moderate.”

“Eruptions of this magnitude are not common,” the center said. “…Users of high frequency (HF) radio signals may experience temporary degradation or complete loss of signal over much of the sunny part of the Earth.”

A separate, stronger Class

The flares came from sunspot region 3664, a massive area of ​​the sun responsible for much of the flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that led to the weekend’s extreme geomagnetic storm. This location remains “the most complex and active on the disk,” NOAA said. This spot is so large that people wearing eclipse glasses can see it from Earth, as it measures about 124,000 miles in diameter, according to Space.com.

This point has been active alongside Regio 3663, which, combined with 3664, is considered “magnetically complex and much larger than Earth,” NOAA said.

CMEs, or large bursts of the solar atmosphere filled with plasma and magnetic fields that lead to geomagnetic storms, are expected to continue throughout Monday and fuel G3 activity.

“Continuing, but weaker, CME influences are expected to diminish responses to unstable levels through G1 (minor) on May 14,” NOAA forecasts.

Solar radiation storms, although minor, are also expected during the same period, as are other radio blackouts, although some of these could be considered “strong” events based on solar flares which burst.