"Direct Hit! A snake-like filament launched as a big #solarstorm while in the Earth-strike zone. NASA predicts impact early July 19..."
Following an eruption last Friday, July 15, a solar storm is expected to hit Earth this week, potentially disrupting the power grid and GPS systems.
As noted by scientists, there has been a lot of solar activity lately. According to U.S. and British weather agencies, separate geomagnetic storms struck Earth in March 2022.
Even though the geomagnetic storms probably caused no damage, they brought attention to the potential harm that more powerful storms could wreak in the future.
A G1-class geomagnetic storm hit Earth earlier this month, causing bright auroras over Canada. There was only one problem, no one saw this storm coming until it was too late.
A giant sunspot on the surface of the sun and filaments on the solar surface caused astronomers to worry about possible solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that could cause blackouts on Earth.
On Friday, news of a massive solar flare erupting from the Sun could cause radio blackouts worldwide.
A “direct hit” from a solar storm
Direct Hit! A snake-like filament launched as a big #solarstorm while in the Earth-strike zone. NASA predicts impact early July 19. Strong #aurora shows possible with this one, deep into mid-latitudes. Amateur #radio & #GPS users expect signal disruptions on Earth's nightside. pic.twitter.com/7FHgS63xiU
— Dr. Tamitha Skov (@TamithaSkov) July 16, 2022
In response, the “Space Weather Woman,” Dr. Tamitha Skov, predicted that a solar storm would hit on Tuesday. Taking to social media, she shared the news and a video of the NASA prediction model.
Dr. Skov is an award-winning science educator on social media and a research scientist at the federally funded Aerospace Corporation.
In a tweet, she wrote, “Direct Hit!”. “A snake-like filament launched as a big solar storm while in the Earth-strike zone.”
“NASA predicts impact early July 19. Strong Aurora shows possible with this one, deep into mid-latitudes,” she said, warning that GPS may be disrupted along with amateur radio.
Solar conditions
She followed up her worrisome tweet with a video of the Sun.
“The long snake-like filament cartwheeled its way off the Sun in a stunning ballet,” the science educator wrote explaining the video.
The long snake-like filament cartwheeled its way off the #Sun in a stunning ballet. The magnetic orientation of this Earth-directed #solarstorm is going to tough to predict. G2-level (possibly G3) conditions may occur if the magnetic field of this storm is oriented southward! pic.twitter.com/SNAZGMmqzi
— Dr. Tamitha Skov (@TamithaSkov) July 16, 2022
“The magnetic orientation of this Earth-directed solar storm is going to be tough to predict. G2-level (possibly G3) conditions may occur if the magnetic field of this storm is oriented southward!” she further noted.
In the current phase of the Sun’s 11-year solar cycle, incidents like these are more likely to occur. In light of this, we must ask: how harmful do they really prove to be? These blackouts can affect GPS navigation systems, which could disrupt small aircraft and ships. Apart from that, there aren’t many concerns.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SOHO) recorded Friday’s event, measuring the canyon-like filament to be about 155,000 miles long and 15,500 miles deep.
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