An American agency announced that a severe solar storm is expected to hit the Earth on Thursday, causing northern lights in areas farther south than usual, with the sun currently approaching the peak of its periodic activity.
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The peak of this cycle, which returns every 11 years, last May led to the most “extreme” solar storm since 2003, caused by a series of coronal mass ejections (CME) from the Sun.
When these particles reach Earth, they disrupt its magnetic field, sometimes resulting in impressive northern lights, but also degrading high-frequency communications, disabling satellites, and overloading the electrical grid.
“We currently expect the storm to arrive between tomorrow morning and tomorrow afternoon,” or between late morning and mid-afternoon GMT, “and that the storm may continue” until Friday, said Sean Dahl of the agency’s satellite meteorological agency. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The particles move at a speed of four million kilometers per hour, which corresponds to a level 4 geomagnetic storm on a scale of 5, according to this organization. Last May, the solar storm reached level five.
More accurate forecasts can only be sent 15 to 30 minutes before impact, when the storm crosses dedicated satellites.
The federal disaster response agency, FEMA, is already under pressure to manage the aftermath of the deadly hurricane Helen And the arrival of his dangerous successor MiltonAccording to Sean Dahl, North American power grid managers have been informed so they can take action to avoid overloads.
In October 2003, a Halloween solar storm plunged entire parts of Sweden into darkness and damaged South Africa's energy infrastructure.
In May, farmers in the northern Midwest noticed malfunctions in their GPS systems, and the storm caused problems with high-voltage transformers, but no major power grid outages, Sean Dahl added.
The orbital plane of more than 5,000 satellites had to be corrected due to disturbances.
If weather conditions and minimal light pollution are met, the northern lights should be visible as far away as northern California or Alabama in the southern United States.
