NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) raised the geomagnetic solar storm alert level from level 3 (moderate) to level 4 (severe) on Thursday, as more solar flares are headed for Earth.
The solar storm could cause problems with GPS, disrupt satellite communications and affect high-frequency radio waves.
“Warnings at this level are very rare”, NOAA stated in the warning. “This is an unusual event.”
The biggest solar storm in two decades
This is the first “severe” geomagnetic storm warning issued since January 2005.
In the past 24 hours, two massive sunspots have combined to cause at least two X-class (the largest) and several M-class (second-largest) solar flares. The newly discovered sunspot has a diameter 16 times that of the Earth, writes the New York Post.
A sunspot has been releasing coronal mass ejections for the past week and continues to be active. Five such ejections will come into “collision” with the Earth from Friday to Sunday inclusive.
“These two sunspot groups are magnetically complex and much larger than Earth. Together, they have been the source of frequent M-class (minor to moderate) flares.”stated the Space Weather Prediction Center. “RGN 3664 (combined sunspot region) continues to increase in magnitude.”
The geomagnetic storm could affect telephones, radio waves and GPS devices
The solar storm could affect radio waves in several areas for several hours. It could also trigger false alarms on security devices and affect GPS systems.
Also, during the solar storm, residents of northern California, Oklahoma, Alabama and Virginia could see the northern lights.
Meteorologists estimate that these conditions occur for about 60 days in total in any 11-year solar cycle.
NOAA says scientists have observed only three severe geomagnetic storms since the current solar cycle began in December 2019.
“The last Severe (observed) geomagnetic storm was on March 23, 2024, and the last extreme was the Halloween storm in October 2003,” SWPC stated.
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