Nusantaratv.com – Space weather physicist Dr Tamitha Skov warns of two major storms being ejected from the Sun’s corona.
Although the scale of the storm is not yet known, it is feared that it could interfere with satellite signals so that the electricity network can be cut off. “We are on high alert. Several sunspot clusters are currently preparing to emit flare to Earth. At least two big flares will happen,” said Dr Skov, as quoted from Express, Tuesday (12/21/2021).
Dr Skov also said certain solar storms could produce beautiful aurorae displayed in the sky in different parts of the world, including the UK.
“Looks like the fast solar storm from the small coronal hole is working harder! At least we can enjoy a bit of aurora over the next few hours,” he explained.
Depending on their severity, solar storms can have a variety of impacts on the planet. According to the United States (US) Center for Space Weather (SWPC), solar storms are rated on a scale of ‘G1 Minor’ to ‘G5 Extreme’, with the latter being particularly dangerous.
Minor hurricanes of the ‘G1 Minor’ category can result in weak power grid fluctuations and have little impact on satellite operations. This condition can also confuse some migratory animals.
Meanwhile, storms with extreme categories can cause the entire power grid to collapse and transformers can be damaged. Furthermore, satellite degradation decreases and low frequency radio signals can be blocked for hours at a time.
“During a storm, currents in the ionosphere, as well as energetic particles that settle into the ionosphere add energy in the form of heat which can increase the density and density distribution in the upper atmosphere, causing extra drag on satellites in low Earth orbit,” explains SWPC.
“Local heating also creates strong horizontal variations in ionospheric density that can alter the path of radio signals and create errors in the position information provided by GPS.”
“While storms create beautiful auroras, they can also disrupt navigation systems such as the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and create dangerous geomagnetic induced currents (GICs) in power lines and pipelines,” the SWPC added.
Solar flares have a tendency to greatly affect the weather of the local space around the Earth. Solar storms also produce streams of solar particles that can impact Earth’s magnetosphere and pose a radiation hazard to spacecraft and astronauts on the space station.
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