Strong M8.5 solar flare erupts at 23:09 UTC on July 1, 2026

A strong M8.5 solar flare erupted at 23:09 UTC on July 1, 2026.

Today’s flares include multiple M-class events: M3.5 at 18:44–19:43 UTC from region 4479, M2.6 at 14:39–14:54 UTC from region 4479, M2.5 at 08:07–08:17 UTC from region 4479, M1.8 at 20:15–20:22 UTC from region 4475, M1.5 at 07:28–07:35 UTC from region 4479, M1.3 at 10:04–10:08 UTC from region 4479, M1.1 at 06:19–06:27 UTC from region 4479, and M1.1 at 14:22–14:31 UTC from region 4479. The strongest flare recorded in the provided dataset for July 1, 2026, is the M8.5 at 23:09 UTC.

In 24 hours to 12:30 UTC on July 1, solar activity reached high levels with one X1.1 flare, several impulsive M-class flares, and ongoing region growth on the disk.

Solar activity is likely to reach moderate levels with a slight chance for X-class flares due to the flare potential of several active regions.

Active sunspot regions presently observed on the Earth-facing solar disk include AR 4475 (S09W63 – Beta), AR 4477 (S14W31 – Beta), AR 4478 (S05W06 – Beta-Gamma-Delta), AR 4479 (N16W24 – Beta-Gamma-Delta), and AR 4480 (S18W30 – Beta).

Over the past 24 hours, the greater than 2 MeV electron flux was at moderate to high levels with a peak flux of 5 687 pfu. The greater than 10 MeV proton flux remained at background levels. High electron flux is expected on July 1 and July 3. Moderate levels are likely on July 2 due to the possible arrival of the June 27 CME. There is a slight chance for a minor solar radiation storm (S1 – Minor).

Solar wind parameters were enhanced due to CME arrival. The total magnetic field strength reached 18 nT and the Bz component was variable with occasional southward deflections to -10 nT. Solar wind speed was steady near 425 km/s. Enhancement is expected to persist through July 1, with further increases possible late on July 1 into July 2 and additional enhancement possible by July 3 due to likely CME arrivals.

The geomagnetic field was initially quiet until the arrival of the CME that left the Sun on June 26, followed by active to G1 – Minor storm conditions for the remainder of the summary period. G1 – Minor storming is expected, with a chance for isolated G2 – Moderate periods through early July 1. Unsettled to active conditions are expected on July 2 with the possible arrival of another CME, while G1-G2 conditions are possible by July 3 pending further analysis.