Scientists from Britain and the United States have revealed details of a massive quake on the Sun, which set off shock waves three kilometres high.

The shock waves, which began underneath a solar flare, spread outwards at four-hundred-thousand kilometres an hour.

It's estimated the energy released matched the power needs of the United States for twenty years.

The Sun-quake was spotted by a European spacecraft, which has been monitoring the Sun for more than two years.

The BBC Science Correspondent says the discovery is the first direct evidence that solar flares produce vibrations like earthquakes in the Sun's interior.