2024-05-13 09:54:10
normal
May 13, 2024
1:54 p.m.
Third night of polar lights as ‘historic’ solar storm continues
Washington – (AFP)
For the third night in a row, the inhabitants of the Earth contemplated the polar auroras which colored the sky due to a solar storm described as “historic”, while the alert for geomagnetic storms remained in force on Monday in the United States. United.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said Sunday that particle emissions from the sun cause a geomagnetic storm when they reach Earth, and “they are expected to reach Earth’s outer atmosphere by the end of the daytime “.
In the United States, the geomagnetic storm warning remained in effect Monday until 2:00 a.m. (06:00 GMT), according to the US Weather Control Center (SWPC), affiliated with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The polar lights will likely appear from New York, northern Iowa (north-central), and Washington state (northwest).
Since Friday, photos of blue, orange and pink lights have spread on social media, taken in many countries and regions, from Austria to California and from Russia to New Zealand.
During the night from Saturday to Sunday, the polar auroras were weaker than Friday, but the phenomenon continues. According to scientists, the intensity of the phenomena observed Sunday evening was less than Friday.
“Further particle emissions are expected to reach Earth late Sunday or early Monday,” said Keith Ryden, director of Britain’s Saray Space Center, which would bring severe geomagnetic storms again and provide a very good opportunity to see the lights. “The surprising polarity is further south than usual.”
A fan of this type of phenomenon declared, in a post on the “X” platform, “To see these lights (…) fill the containers that retain the heat with coffee and wait.”
Friday marked the first severe geomagnetic storm recorded since the 2003 storm known as the Halloween Solar Storm.
Limited nuisance
Although authorities were concerned about the possibility of the phenomenon having a negative impact on electricity and communications networks, no major disruptions have been observed to date.
The US Weather Monitoring Center confirmed that only preliminary information had been released on power grid instability, in addition to deterioration of high-frequency communications, GPS and possibly satellite navigation.
In a post on his “X” platform, billionaire Elon Musk, owner of Starlink, a satellite Internet services company that operates thousands of satellites in low orbit, confirmed that these satellites “are under a lot of pressure, but they resist.” so far.”
The US Civil Aviation Agency has confirmed that it does not expect any significant complications for shipping as a result of the storm.
However, it says geomagnetic storms can disrupt the operation of high-frequency navigation and broadcast devices, and recommends that airlines and pilots “expect” possible disruptions.
Arrival in China
In China, the polar lights were visible in the northern half of the country, according to the Xinhua news agency, after the warning issued on Saturday by the China Meteorological Center.
The sun is currently approaching peak activity in a cycle that repeats every 11 years. These coronal mass ejections, at least seven of which are directed toward Earth, come from a sunspot with a diameter 17 times larger than Earth’s.
The most powerful solar storm recorded in history was in 1859, according to NASA, and was known as the “Carriton Event,” and at that time it caused disruptions in telegraph lines.
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