An extremely large group of sunspots has appeared in the southern hemisphere of the sun, and is currently oriented directly towards the Earth.  The sunspot group, called AR 1520, is about 200 000 kilometers wide, 20 times the diameter of the Earth. As of July 11th, it has not released any solar flares, but has the potential energy to do so.   The NOAA forecasts an 80% chance of an M-Class solar flare and a 15% chance of an X-Class flare within the next 24 hours.  If a large flare does occur, it could disrupt communications, damage satellites, and cause power outages and auroras all over the planet. 

Images obtained July 10th and 11th, 2012

Image Credits: Solar Dynamics Observatory, Christian Viladrich

(Source: infinity-imagined)