7:08 pm ET, May 10, 2024
Officials say this solar storm is “an unusual event” — but it’s not the first instance of space weather
From CNN’s Brian Fung and Ashley Strickland
US scientists are warning of possible communication outages or interference with GPS systems as at least five coronal mass ejections from the Sun hit Earth on Friday and this weekend.
The Space Weather Forecast Center notes this “An extraordinary event.” There have been three geomagnetic storms since December 2019, but all were considered weak, the center said.
So far, researchers have observed only three severe geomagnetic storms during the current solar cycle, which began in December 2019, the center said.
Earlier, a G5, or intense geomagnetic storm, occurred in October 2003, resulting in power outages in Sweden and damaged transformers in South Africa, the center said. This current storm is classified as G4, the second highest category.
In October, a stronger-than-forecast geomagnetic storm knocked out power in Sweden and damaged transformers in South Africa this weekend, SWPC said.
The largest known geomagnetic storm in history, known as the Carrington Event of 1859, caused sparks and sparks in telegraph stations.
