Solar activity was high. An M4 x-ray event occurred at 0404 UTC and an M8 x-ray event occurred at 1027 UTC. Both events were from Region 537 (N07E64) and were associated with type II sweeps and CMEs off the east limb. The region rotated more fully into view today as a small (280 millionths) but bright and magnetically complex sunspot group. Region 536 (S11W02) continues to be the largest group on the disk and is maintaining its beta-gamma-delta configuration. There was some indication today that the region may be slowly decaying. Region 536 could only manage to produce a couple B-class events. Two new, small, simple regions emerged on the disk today: Region 538 (N07E04) and Region 539 (N09E29).

Solar activity is expected to be moderate with a chance for isolated major flare activity. Region 537 is expected to remain active and Region 536 still has the potential for producing significant flare activity as well.

The geomagnetic field ranged from unsettled to major storm levels during the past 24 hours. An enhancement in the solar wind flow was observed at ACE, beginning 2000 UTC on 06 January. The enhancement consisted of an increase in total field and in solar wind velocity, and included some extended negative Bz intervals in the -1 to -10 nT range. Although the flow was somewhat atypical (low density, high temperature), the signatures appear to be consistent with a CME led by a compression wave and expanding in low density solar wind that originated in association with the M6 x-ray event on 5 January. The slow rotation of Bz from negative to positive during the last 18 hours resulted in a decrease in geomagnetic activity during the last 5-6 hours of the period. The greater than 2 MeV electron fluxes were high during the past 24 hours.

The geomagnetic field is expected to be mostly active with some minor storm periods for 08 January based on the continued influence of a high speed solar wind stream. Mostly active conditions should predominate on 09 January and a decline to mostly unsettled levels is expected on 10 January.

  Observed       07 Jan 119
  Predicted   08 Jan-10 Jan  120/125/125
  90 Day Mean        07 Jan 135

  Observed Afr/Ap 06 Jan  017/020
  Estimated     Afr/Ap 07 Jan  030/030
  Predicted    Afr/Ap 08 Jan-10 Jan  025/030-020/020-015/015