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Solar Storm The American Space Weather Prediction Center has predicted a severe solar storm to hit the Earth this weekend. For this, Gambhir (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch has been issued. The storm, the first of its kind since January 2005, will cause worldwide blackouts, disruption to navigation systems and the threat of high-frequency radio wave collisions.
According to Bloomberg report, all flights flying in the trans-polar region between Europe, Asia and North America will be re-routed to protect passengers and crew members from radiation exposure. Space Weather Prediction Center said that this type of incident is very rare.
Five eruptions from the Sun’s atmosphere are predicted to begin late Friday night and continue through Sunday. According to Bloomberg, the true strength of the storm will be known about 60 to 90 minutes before it hits the Earth because satellites measure the burst of energy released. Coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, are explosive events that occur on the surface of the Sun. In these, there is an explosion of plasma and magnetic field from the corona of the Sun. When these coronal mass ejections are directed toward Earth, they can generate geomagnetic storms.
Such storms have the potential to impact various systems both in Earth’s orbit and on the planet’s surface. Due to this, there is a possibility of disruption in communications, electrical power grid, navigation, radio and satellite operations. On Earth, humans get protection from the Earth’s magnetic field. But electrical grids remain at risk, pipelines can be charged with current, and spacecraft can go off course. The last time a G5 hurricane hit Earth was in October 2003 – the deadliest on the scale. This resulted in power outages in Sweden and damage to transformers in South Africa.
first published : May 10, 2024, 10:41 PM IST
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