It has been just over 24 hours since the severe solar storm struck Earth, but looking at things today, there appears to be no relief for our planet. Forecasters have predicted that another coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud is expected to strike the Earth tomorrow, April 27, sparking a geomagnetic storm. Another major storm just days later could lead to a series of radio blackouts, GPS disruptions, and more. As scientists continue to assess the full impact of the previous G4-class geomagnetic storm, this one can add to their troubles.
As per a report by SpaceWeather.com, “Another CME is coming. But this one will not cause a severe geomagnetic storm. Unlike the CME that struck Earth directly on March 23rd, the next CME will deliver only a glancing blow. It was hurled into space on April 24th by an explosion in the sun’s southern hemisphere; most of the CME will sail harmlessly south of our planet”. Despite the relief, the report goes on to say that a G1 to G2 class geomagnetic storm is still on the cards.
Another solar storm to hit the Earth
Even with the prediction expecting a minor geomagnetic storm, things can be more complicated if the CME is assisted by solar winds or they find a crack in the Earth’s magnetic fields. As it stands, the storm can still affect us in a number of ways. It can cause shortwave radio blackouts which would temporarily break wireless communication. It can also cause GPS disruption, impact mobile network coverage and damage smaller satellites such as Starlink satellites by SpaceX. As the CME cloud nears the Earth, a better assessment can be made.
The month of April turned out to be another one to be continuously hit by solar storms. There has been one or other solar disturbance that has affected our planet this month except for one week when things were quiet. Previously, January and February have both broken records for witnessing a high amount of solar activity.
NASA Tech that monitors the Sun
NASA’s SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) is a satellite that was launched on December 2, 1995. It is a joint project between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) to study the sun, its atmosphere, and its effects on the solar system. Equipped with 12 scientific instruments, such as the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT), Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI), LASCO (Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph), and others, SOHO captures images of the sun’s corona, measures the velocity and magnetic fields of the sun’s surface, and observes the faint corona around the sun.
