If you were feeling a little light headed yesterday, or the WiFi wasn’t working like it should, it might not have been your imagination..That’s because the Earth was rocked with a Level 4 geomatic storm Sunday afternoon around 1:30 (EST), according to the US’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). That’s one lower than a Level 5 which can cause mass communication outages..The storm, which is known by the technical term “coronal mass ejection”, is basically an eruption of magnetized hydrogen gas — also called plasma — on Friday that “expanded outward… in an immense cone shape.” .It has the potential to disrupt power grids and satellite communications — presumably including the NHL playoffs — above 45 degrees north latitude up to and including all of Canada. The Aurora Borealis were reportedly seen as far south as Alabama and Northern California on Sunday night..By Monday morning NOAA said the initial effects of the storm were winding down but warned there could be more on the way. .According to the agency the charged particles — basically protons and electrons — travelled at nearly 3.2 million km/hr and reached Earth in about two days. The storm arrived earlier and was stronger than expected, it said in a statement. Because those particles travel at the speed of light, by the time scientists see the flare it’s pretty much already here. .Potential impacts can include widespread irregularities to the power grid, spacecraft, global positioning systems, and radio communications which often result in spectacular Northern Lights displays. .Although NOAA said these are mostly manageable, impacts can be quite severe. In 1859 a massive solar storm dubbed the Carrington Event — named for an amateur astronomer in England — was so intense that nascent telegraph stations caught fire. According to historians, there were reports of sparks showering from telegraph wires and operators catching electric shocks..Auroral displays — aka the Northern Lights — were visible in places like Honolulu and Cuba. The flare, which lasted about 17 minutes, was so bright that birds reportedly started chirping in anticipation of sunrise.. Aurora Borealis .According to a research paper at the University of California at Irvine, a similar event today could cause an “internet apocalypse” that could last for months. The study estimated the economic impact of an internet disruption in the US alone at $7 billion per day. According to NASA, Lloyd’s of London and NOAA have pegged the overall damage of a Carrington-sized event to be on the order of $2.6 trillion. Luckily, it’s considered a once-in-500-year event..That said, smaller storms can also wreak havoc. A CME in 1989 knocked out power in all of Quebec for more than nine hours. That’s why the UK government ranks adverse “space weather” among its most serious hazards in its National Risk Register and requires appropriate contingency planning to deal with it..Solar storms are associated with sunspots on 11-year cycles. According to NASA the next peak is in 2025, which means there are almost certain to be more to come.
