Grids on high alert for another solar storm
Print Edition
The Northern and Southern Lights, Mother Nature鈥檚 kaleidoscopic treat, was to make a repeat performance late yesterday.
A solar storm was to slam into the earth yesterday due to a solar flare earlier in the week, with the potential to disrupt power to millions of homes and businesses and satellite service, according to the US Space Weather Prediction Center.
That will be the second solar storm to hit the earth this week.
On Monday, a severe geomagnetic storm sparked an intense aurora, the natural electric phenomenon that creates bright and colorful light displays in the skies, that was visible much further from the poles than usual.
In northern latitudes, the Northern Lights are usually only visible in Canada, Alaska and northern Europe but were seen as far south as Washington DC on Monday, according to local reports.
In the southern hemisphere, reports from Australia said the Southern Lights 鈥 usually only visible in Tasmania 鈥 were visible across much of the country.
Yesterday, the Space Weather Prediction Center said the Northern Lights should be visible across most of Canada and in the US northern tier states of North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan and northern Maine.
The storms that began on Monday reached the 鈥渟evere鈥 G4 level on the Space Weather Prediction Center鈥檚 geomagnetic storm scale.
The center measures geomagnetic storms on a five-level scale, with G1 a minor storm and G5 an extreme storm.
A G4 storm can cause possible voltage control problems for some power systems and degrade satellite navigation and radio service, the center said yesterday.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 娌狪CP璇侊細娌狪CP澶05050403鍙-1
- |
- 浜掕仈缃戞柊闂讳俊鎭湇鍔¤鍙瘉锛31120180004
- |
- 缃戠粶瑙嗗惉璁稿彲璇侊細0909346
- |
- 骞挎挱鐢佃鑺傜洰鍒朵綔璁稿彲璇侊細娌瓧绗354鍙
- |
- 澧炲肩數淇′笟鍔＄粡钀ヨ鍙瘉锛氭勃B2-20120012
Copyright 漏 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
