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Flares happen when the powerful magnetic field in and around the sun reconnect. They are usually associated with active regions often seen as sunspots, where the magnetic fields are strongest. Flares are classified according to their strength. The smallest ones are B-class, followed by C, M, and X, the largest. Similar to the Richter scale for earthquake, each letter represents a tenfold increase in energy output. So an X is ten times an M and 100 times a C. In each letter class there is a finer scale from one to nine. The class flares are two weeks out to noticeably affect Earth.