CME approaching Earth could spark G1-class Geomagnetic storm! Know details

A potential G1-class Geomagnetic storm impact could be on the cards as a CME has set course for Earth and will hit soon, according to reports.

By: HT TECH
| Updated on: May 15 2023, 08:12 IST
Fascinating NASA Astronomy Pictures of the Week: Dancer Galaxy, Milky Way and more
Geomagnetic storm
1/5 Spanish Dancer Galaxy: On May 8th, NASA shared a mesmerizing view of the Spanish Dancer Spiral Galaxy (NGC 1566). Within the galaxy are blue star clusters and dark cosmic dust lanes which follow two prominent spiral arms. (NASA/ESA/Hubble/Detlev Odenthal)
Geomagnetic storm
2/5 Earth casts a double shadow: On May 9th, NASA shared a snapshot of the Earth with double shadows captured during a lunar eclipse. The section in the middle is called the Belt of Venus.  (NASA/ Marcella Giulia Pace Sampieri)
Geomagnetic storm
3/5 Milky Way Galaxy visible in Egyptian Desert's skies: How does the Milky Way Galaxy get its name? Greeks said this white streak was a "river of milk". The ancient Romans called it the Via Galactica, or "road made of milk". (NASA/Amr Abdelwahab)
Geomagnetic storm
4/5 Fomalhaut's debris disk: It brings a snapshot of the dusty debris disk which surrounds Fomalhaut, which is located just 25 light-years away.  (NASA/ESA/JWST/Andras Gaspar/Alyssa Pagan)
Geomagnetic storm
5/5 Halley's Dust in the night sky: The remnants of the periodic Comet Halley's debris streams left a surreal view for all stargazers.  (Petr Horalek / Institute of Physics in Opava)
Geomagnetic storm
icon View all Images
The CME impact will spark a Geomagnetic storm. (REUTERS)

We have seen rampant solar activity in the past few months. Natural phenomena such as sunspot eruptions, solar storms, solar flares, geomagnetic storms, and more, have been bombarding Earth. But why? According to NASA, this is because the Sun entered solar cycle 25 in 2019 and it is expected that it will hit its peak in July 2025, thus resulting in increased solar activity even further during the peak. Although this solar activity might seem harmless due to the distance of the Sun from our planet, it can cause major damage to infrastructure. Therefore, Earth is in for a rough ride until then.

Recently, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have issued a warning against a potential CME impact that could hit Earth soon.

Geomagnetic storm risk

A recent report by spaceweather.com has revealed that a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) was spewed out by the Sun, and it could hit Earth as soon as tomorrow, May 16. NOAA forecasters observed this faint and slow-moving CME hurl into space on May 12 and since then it has been on course for Earth's impact.

Also read
Looking for a smartphone? To check mobile finder click here.

This CME impact could spark a G1-class Geomagnetic storm; the report further revealed. Such impacts can do more damage than just Auroras. They can damage small satellites, impact mobile networks, and GPS, and even pose a threat to ground-based electronics and power grids by increasing the magnetic potential by huge amounts.

How NASA monitors solar activity

Among many satellites and telescopes observing the Sun currently, one is the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). The SDO carries a full suite of instruments to observe the Sun and has been doing so since 2010. It uses three very crucial instruments to collect data from various solar activities.

They include the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) which takes high-resolution measurements of the longitudinal and vector magnetic field over the entire visible solar disk, Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) which measures the Sun's extreme ultraviolet irradiance, and Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) which provides continuous full-disk observations of the solar chromosphere and corona in seven extreme ultraviolet (EUV) channels.

Catch all the Latest Tech News, Mobile News, Laptop News, Gaming news, Wearables News , How To News, also keep up with us on Whatsapp channel,Twitter, Facebook, Google News, and Instagram. For our latest videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel.

First Published Date: 15 May, 08:12 IST
NEXT ARTICLE BEGINS