We have had somewhat of a slowdown in flares recently; however, that may be about to change. Sunspot region 3354 appeared out of nowhere on June 27, and has been growing ever since. Now listed as a Beta-Gamma-Delta spot, it looks to be a likely contender for strong M or even X-class flares. Additionally, it is facing Earth almost perfectly.
We had an M-3.8 flare from the vicinity of this region earlier today, peaking at 14:15 UTC. It is hard to tell for sure yet if a CME was launched, although it does not seem very likely, as the flare was rather impulsive. We will have to wait for final confirmation.
If you have any method of observing the sun, even simple naked-eye eclipse glasses, try them out! AR3354 is large enough to be visible with no magnification. If you have smoky skies, as many in North America and even some in Europe now do, pointing a camera at the sun, especially near sunrise and sunset when the sun is filtered through more layers of smoke, may let you see the sunspot region. A word of warning: never observe the sun without proper filtration. Even if smoke or pollution makes it dim enough to look at, damaging UV and infrared radiation can still get through. Use a solar filter or look through a camera.
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