Sunspot AR2257 erupted on Jan. 13th, 2015 triggering an M5-class solar flare at 04:24 UT.
A pulse of extreme UV radiation ionized Earth’s upper atmosphere over Australia and the Indian Ocean creating radio blackouts:
Mariners and ham radio operators have noticed a brief communications blackout at frequencies below about 10 MHz.
It is still unknown if the flare also produced a coronal mass ejection. If so, it would miss Earth because the sunspot is not centered on the solar disk.
Listen to the creepy sound of a strong solar flare!
