Magnetic storm on its way to Earth: “A lot of energy”

A magnetic wave that strikes the earth at hundreds of kilometers per second. The US weather service SWPC warns about this. In addition, the wave would cause a “geomagnetic storm”. Michiel Brentjens of ASTRON from Dwingeloo explains how all this can happen.

“The sun has been choppy for the past few days, there have been several explosions. And they happen because the magnetic fields get tangled. And when they get out of control, a lot of energy is released,” says radio astronomer Brentjens. This energy is full of magnetic force and can have a significant impact if it collides with the magnetic field around the Earth.

“People who will notice something about this work, for example, in defence, international aid organizations and in aviation or shipping,” Brentjens knows. “They use radio links and communications over large distances. These systems can be disrupted. Another thing we may notice is that GPS reception may be a little worse for a while.”

The SWPC rates magnetic storms on a scale of 1 to 5, with the latter category being extreme. The storm that will hit Earth tomorrow is nothing more than a Class 1 storm, according to the SWPC.