Space weather forecasters issued a geomagnetic storm watch on Monday, saying bursts of plasma from solar flares could disrupt radio transmissions on Earth. It also offers viewing of the Aurora Borealis.
The public has no reason to worry, according to an alert issued Saturday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado.
Storms can interrupt high-frequency radio transmissions, such as those of aircraft trying to communicate with distant traffic control towers. Most commercial aircraft can use satellite transmissions as a backup, said Jonathan Rush, a forecaster at the center.
Satellite operators may have difficulty tracking their spacecraft, and power grids may see some “induced currents” in their lines, he said, though it’s nothing they can’t handle.
“For the general public, if the sky is clear at night and you’re at a higher latitude, this will be a great opportunity to watch the sky light up,” Rush said.
Every 11 years, the Sun’s magnetic field flips, meaning its north and south poles swap places. Solar activity changes during this cycle and is now approaching its most active period, called solar maximum.
During times like these, Rush said, geomagnetic storms of the kind arriving Sunday could hit Earth a few times a year. During solar minimum, there may be several years between storms.
In December, the worst solar flare in years disrupted radio communications.
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