On Friday, Earth was hit by the strongest geomagnetic storm in 20 years. Intense solar activity has released large amounts of radiation towards Earth, causing fluctuations in the upper atmosphere, causing disruptions to power grids, radio blackouts, and other technology and infrastructure.
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center issued an unusual warning Thursday, informing the public that five coronal mass ejections aimed at Earth could converge to create a severe solar storm.
The sun's radiation began hitting Earth on Friday and continued into Sunday, resulting in colorful aurora borealis blanketing the skies in many parts of the world. Apart from being a natural wonder, the geomagnetic storm also affected broadband satellites and her GPS satellites in orbit.
NOAA classified the solar storm as a G5, or “extreme” solar storm, the first since October 2003. The Sun is nearing solar maximum, a period of high activity in the 11-year cycle characterized by intense solar flares and coronal mass. Spouts and huge sunspots. The most recent CME observed on the Sun was associated with sunspot AR3664, which spans approximately 124,300 miles (200,000 kilometers). It's so large that you can see it for yourself with eclipse glasses (though it quickly disappears from our line of sight).
The most intense solar storm ever recorded occurred in 1859. The Carrington event was a G5 geomagnetic storm and caused major disruption to compasses and telegraph lines, even causing fires to break out through the wires at some telegraph stations. Last weekend's solar storm was within the G5 range and ultimately did not cause much damage, but the solar tantrum did impact some of the technology we rely on on a daily basis. .
When charged particles from the sun hit Earth's atmosphere, they can cause oscillations in Earth's magnetic field. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center told NPR that by Saturday there had been reports of power grid glitches, loss of high-frequency communications and some GPS failures.
Shortly after the X-class solar flare peaked early Friday morning, high-frequency radio blackouts were also observed across Asia, Eastern Europe, and East Africa, according to Space.com.
Solar radiation affects Earth's ionosphere, a layer in the upper atmosphere, causing fluctuations that can interfere with radio transmissions from satellites passing through this layer. This variation can also prevent radio communications from bouncing off the ionosphere or degrade communications as they pass through and interact with the increased electrons in Earth's upper atmosphere.
Elon Musk said Saturday that the “massive geomagnetic solar storm that's happening right now” is straining SpaceX's broadband internet satellites. “Starlink satellites are under tremendous pressure but are holding up so far,” Musk wrote in X.
John Deere sent a text message to customers on Saturday warning farmers that the accuracy of some tractor systems could be “significantly compromised.” “The base stations were transmitting modified signals that were influenced by geomagnetic storms, causing dramatic changes in the magnetic field and even significant changes in orientation,” the company wrote.
A farmer in South Dakota is experiencing problems with his equipment, with his GPS system showing his tractor swerving or the autopilot not working, local news outlets reported.
It could also have a delayed impact on satellites in orbit, as solar plasma heats the atmosphere and increases atmospheric resistance, pulling the satellites down from orbit. According to NASA, 38 commercial satellites were lost in February 2022 due to a coronal mass ejection.
Scientists have been observing the Sun for centuries, but there's still much we don't know about our host star, including how to better predict space weather. Last weekend, a solar storm provided scientists with an opportunity to closely observe the sun's explosion and learn more about how it affects us on Earth. The star has had quite a year so far, thanks to April's total solar eclipse and subsequent geomagnetic storm.
Read more: Still have Eclipse glasses? Use them to see this giant sunspot
