The explosion caused by the Earth directed at the Sun puts the planet in the strike zone! SpaceWeather.com reports that a giant magnetic filament sliding across the southern hemisphere of the Sun erupted on April 21, throwing a cluster of particles in the direction of Earth. It also shared a clip from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory showing that shortly after the eruption on the Sun’s surface, the US Air Force reported Type II solar radio bursts and Type IV. These are natural shortwave emissions produced by the pre-CME shock wave as it passes through the Sun’s atmosphere.
Solar bursts fire coronal mass eruptions (CMEs), which eventually produce geomagnetic storm on the earth. The worry is that these CMEs are headed straight for Earth. “CME will reach Earth in the first hours of April 24 between 00:00 and 12:00 UT”, models from NASA and from NOAA suggested. This could lead to G1- (Minor) to G2 (Moderate) geomagnetic storms, NOAA forecasters suggested. Not only that, NOAA says it could even turn into a G3-class geomagnetic storm.
The same has been confirmed through space weather expert Dr Tamitha Skov, who tweeted“Direct Hit: NOAA predictions suggest the upcoming #solarstorm will hit Earth as early as April 24. Easily a Category G2 hurricane at mid-latitudes, the chance of an aurora is very high. The storm still must have the right magnetic field direction to maintain the programs. Expect HF radio & GPS problems at night.”
The impact of geomagnetic storms on Earth
Geomagnetic storms can cause temporary disturbances in the planet’s magnetic field, releasing a powerful blast of magnetic energy. This energy can ionize oxygen in the upper atmosphere, creating the characteristic blue hue of the aurora. The SpaceWeather.com report also mentioned, “During such storms, auroras have been seen in the United States as far south, such as Illinois and Oregon.”
Furthermore, these storms have the potential to cause significant disruptions in GPS, radio communications, cell phone connections, and satellite operations. In addition, they can generate dangerous geomagnetic induced currents in the power grid, which can lead to disturbances in the power supply.
