Solar flares are classed as A, B, C, M or X, based on the amount of X-Ray radiation emitted. X-class flares are the most powerful, and the strongest on record is a class X34, which would have emitted enough radiation to make an astronaut on the moon critically ill. There have been even more powerful flares in the past, such as the solar storm of 1859 which shorted out telegraph wires across Europe and the US.
It's highly unlikely that anyone aboard Espenson Station or any docked ships would be exposed to enough radiation to cause any harmful effects, as all ships and stations have some form of radiation shielding, but since solar flares are difficult to predict it is standard procedure to evacuate vulnerable areas in the event of a powerful flare. Neither Radiant Industries nor the R.A.S.F. want to have to deal with a lawsuit. |
