KANSAS CITY, Mo. — NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory spotted intense solar flares this week. On Wednesday, the space agency reported, the sun erupted in a solar flare shortly after 5 a.m. EDT and then again around 8 a.m. The flares were considered by some scientists to be mid-range, while others discussed them as among the most intense class of solar flares.

This led to concern that the flares could cause geomagnetic storms that would then cause problems on Earth.

“A geomagnetic storm is a major disturbance of Earth’s magnetosphere that occurs when there is a very efficient exchange of energy from the solar wind into the space environments surrounding Earth, the  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration explains.

Click here for predictions on how it could affect Earth.