Local favorites Semisonic, country star Phil Vassar and one of the Ramones are among the artists set to play the Minnesota State Fair’s largest free stage, the Leinie Lodge Bandshell.

The State Fair’s newly announced free stage entertainment lineup features more than 900 shows throughout the Great Minnesota Get-Together’s 12-day run.

The Leinie Lodge lineup includes:

Phil Vassar (Aug. 22-23): Vassar began his Nashville career in the late ’90s, co-writing singles for the likes of Tim McGraw, Jo Dee Messina and Alan Jackson. He went on to release a series of hits of his own in the ’00s, including “Just Another Day in Paradise,” “In a Real Love,” “Last Day of My Life” and “Love Is a Beautiful Thing.”

Maggie Rose (Aug. 24-25): The singer/songwriter emerged in 2009 with a cover of Kings of Leon’s “Use Somebody.” In the years since, Rose has scored a handful of minor country radio hits, while earning praise for her soulful singing and stage presence.

The War and Treaty (Aug. 26-27): The husband-and-wife duo are known for performing passionate soul music that draws on country, folk, R&B and gospel. They’ve collaborated with Emmylou Harris, Jason Isbell and Zach Bryan and earned a best new artist Grammy nomination last year.

Marky Ramone (Aug. 28-29): All four of the original members of New York punk legends the Ramones have died, but drummer Marky Ramone is keeping their music alive. He joined the band in 1978, when original drummer Tommy Ramone stepped down to become the group’s manager.

Moon Taxi (Aug. 30-31): The Nashville jam band has built an audience through heavy touring, including opening for Gov’t Mule, Umphrey’s McGee and Matisyahu and maintaining a steady presence playing festivals. They earned a radio hit in 2017 with “Two High.”

Semisonic (Sept. 1-2): Formed by former Trip Shakespeare bandmates Dan Wilson and John Munson, along with drummer Jacob Slichter, Semisonic scored a massive hit with their 1998 ballad “Closing Time,” which topped the Billboard modern rock tracks chart. It went on to earn a Grammy nomination for best rock song and hit the charts in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. After taking a two-decade break from recording, the trio released their fourth album “Little Bit of Sun” in November.

The full lineup with showtimes for all free stages is online at mnstatefair.org.

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By MARCIA DUNN (AP Aerospace Writer)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The sun produced its biggest flare in nearly a decade Tuesday, just days after severe solar storms pummeled Earth and created dazzling northern lights in unaccustomed places.

“Not done yet!” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced in an update.

It’s the biggest flare of this 11-year solar cycle, which is approaching its peak, according to NOAA. The good news is that Earth should be out of the line of fire this time because the flare erupted on a part of the sun moving away from Earth.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured the bright flash of the X-ray flare. It was the strongest since 2005, rated on the scale for these flares as X8.7.

Bryan Brasher at NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado said it may turn out to have been even stronger when scientists gather data from other sources.

It follows nearly a week of flares and mass ejections of coronal plasma that threatened to disrupt power and communications on Earth and in orbit.

NASA said the weekend geomagnetic storm caused one of its environmental satellites to rotate unexpectedly because of reduced altitude from the space weather, and go into a protective hibernation known as safe mode. And at the International Space Station, the seven astronauts were advised to stay in areas with strong radiation shielding. The crew was never in any danger, according to NASA.

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