Earth was struck by an intense solar storm on Monday, potentially bringing the Northern Lights to night skies further south than usual, according to a U.S. agency.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) observed conditions of a level-four geomagnetic storm starting from 3 p.m. on Monday. While these severe conditions may persist for several hours, they are not expected to intensify further, NOAA stated.
“A severe geomagnetic storm includes the potential for aurora to be seen faintly as far south as Alabama and Northern California,” NOAA added.
This solar storm is caused by coronal mass ejections—explosions of particles leaving the sun. When these particles reach Earth, they disrupt its magnetic field, leading to geomagnetic storms.
Astrophysicists are intrigued by the possibility of witnessing auroras in unusual locations. “There are a lot of auroras now… If it lasts until nightfall here, we might be able to see some,” said Eric Lagadec, an astrophysicist at the Côte d’Azur Observatory in France, on X.
On Sunday, NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick shared a stunning photo of the aurora borealis taken from the International Space Station, where he is currently stationed.
While the auroras offer a spectacular sight, solar storms can also have disruptive effects. They can degrade high-frequency communications, interfere with satellites, and cause overloads on power grids. NOAA noted that operators of sensitive infrastructure have been alerted to implement measures to mitigate these effects.
In May, Earth experienced one of the most powerful geomagnetic storms recorded in 20 years, causing auroras to light up night skies across the United States, Europe, and Australia—at much lower latitudes than usual.
Such events have been increasing recently as the sun approaches its peak activity in its 11-year cycle.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
