A powerful solar storm is approaching the Earth at a speed of 1.6 million kilometers.
Context
A powerful solar storm is approaching the Earth at a speed of 1.6 million kilometers.
What are solar storms?
- The solar storms or geomagnetic storms are streams of charged particles or plasma that erupt from the Sun and out into space.
- Cause: These are caused by solar features and phenomena like flares, prominences, sunspots, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs).
- In a solar storm, stored magnetic energy is suddenly released from the sun.
How do they impact Earth?
- These solar winds of energy can sometimes hit the Earth and cause temporary disturbances in the planet’s magnetic field.
- While Earth’s magnetosphere, its magnetic shield, absorbs most of these solar storms, some of them can cause:
- chaotic disturbances like blinding satellites
- disrupting mobile phone and GPS signals
- widespread power outages
Key-details of the upcoming storm
- The solar storm or geomagnetic storm originated from the Sun's atmosphere.
- It can have a significant impact on a region of space dominated by Earth's magnetic field.
- Due to the solar storm, it will give a view of beautiful celestial lighting for the people living at the North or South Pole.
- The people living closer to these areas can expect to see beautiful aurora at night.
- The speed of the solar storm is about 1.6 million kilometers per hour.
- The most powerful geomagnetic storm ever recorded resulted in the 1859 Carrington Event when telegraph lines electrified, destroying operators and setting offices ablaze in North America and Europe.
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