All you wanted to know about a Geomagnetic storm, but were afraid to ask

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A Geomagnetic storm, depending on its strength, can be a very dangerous thing for humans. Such a storm can disrupt electricity and all electronics including the Internet and mobile phones,

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A Geomagnetic storm is what is generated on Earth as a result of solar flares and other material being ejected into space by our Sun. It is basically a severe disturbance of Earth's magnetosphere, NOAA explained.

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A geomagnetic storm occurs when there is a highly effective transfer of energy from the solar wind to the space environment surrounding the Earth.

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Fluctuations in the solar wind cause significant alterations in the currents, plasmas, and fields within the Earth's magnetosphere, giving rise to geomagnetic storms.

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Does it pose threat to Earth? Though it poses no direct threat to humans on Earth, it can leave everyone without electricity and Internet! That means everything that depends on electricity can falter. 

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It can even have an impact on satellites in space. More the intensity of the solar flare, more the strength of the geomagnetic storm, which implies a stronger impact on Earth.

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During the storms, it can lead to increased heat energy in the ionosphere due to the heightened currents and precipitation of energetic particles. 

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The intense heating also generates significant horizontal fluctuations in ionospheric density, which can alter the trajectory of radio signals and introduce inaccuracies in GPS positioning data. 

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These storms can interfere with navigation systems like the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and cause damaging geomagnetic induced currents (GICs) in power grids and pipelines.

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Apart from its terror angle, it can spark stunning auroras on Earth.

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These sparkling lights are mainly caused by the solar winds in space, basically the charged particles from the Sun, which accelerate through the field lines of the Earth's magnetic field.