News, views and top stories in your inbox. Don't miss our must-read newsletter Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

If a superflare erupted from the Sun , experts have predicted it will have a "devastating" effect on the Earth.

It could break down radio communication, damage power supplies across the planet and threaten the stability of our atmosphere.

And, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Communications , the possibility is not as far-fetched as scientists first thought.

"We certainly did not expect to find superflare stars with magnetic fields as weak as the magnetic fields on the Sun," said Christoffer Karoff from Aarhus University in Denmark.

"This opens the possibility that the Sun could generate a superflare - a very frightening thought."

(Image: PA) (Image: NASA)

Karoff led the international research team that observed the surface of almost 100,000 stars using a telescope in China. The plan was to investigate whether superflares are formed the same way as standard solar flares .

That is - they occur when large magnetic fields on the surface of a star collapse and huge amounts of energy are released.

Read more:Solar storm triggers spectacular 'Northern Lights' on Jupiter that are hundreds of times brighter than those on Earth

(Image: Barcroft)

"The magnetic fields on the surface of stars with superflares are generally stronger than the magnetic fields on the surface of the Sun. This is exactly what we would expect, if superflares are formed in the same way as solar flares," said Karoff.

And 10% of the stars the team observed had a magnetic field similar to our own Sun. Which means that, although it's unlikely it will produce a superflare, there's always the possibility.

The new study shows that the Sun, statistically speaking, should experience a small superflare every millennium.

"If the Sun were to produce a superflare it would be disastrous for life on Earth," said Chloe Pugh, from the University of Warwick.

"Our GPS and radio communication systems could be severely disrupted and there could be large-scale power blackouts as a result of strong electrical currents being induced in power grids."

Read more:Watch NASA's footage of an exploding star '500 times larger than our own sun'