Earth has recently experienced its most powerful geomagnetic storm in over two decades as a series of solar storms bombarded our planet. The extraordinary event triggered vibrant aurora displays as far south as Florida and caused irregularities in power grids and temporary satellite issues. The prolonged disturbance, which began on Friday, May 10, and continued until the early hours of Monday, May 13, was initiated when a barrage of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) struck our planet’s protective field. These CMEs were ejected into space last week by a single, massive sunspot named AR3664, which is roughly the size of Earth. The majority of these flares were classified as X-class, the most powerful type of surface explosion the sun can produce. The CME bombardment temporarily weakened Earth’s protective field, allowing charged particles from the sun to penetrate deep into the atmosphere and excite molecules of gas. These excited molecules, in turn, triggered vibrant, multicolored auroras at latitudes much farther from Earth’s polar regions than normal. In the Northern Hemisphere, auroras lit up the skies as far south as Florida, Mexico, and Puerto Rico, as well as across parts of Europe. Similar light shows were also observed at equally unusual latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere. Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) had predicted that the storm would be a “severe” G4 disturbance, the second-highest level of geomagnetic storms. However, the disturbance exceeded initial expectations and briefly reached “extreme” G5 status at least twice over the weekend, first on May 10 and again on May 11. This is the same category as the infamous 1859 Carrington Event and marks the first time Earth has experienced G5 conditions since 2005. In theory, G5 storms can disrupt power grids and communication systems, but in this case, the worst effects seem to have been some minor “power grid irregularities” and temporary disruptions to GPS and other satellite services, according to the SWPC. G5-class storms are rare but are more likely to occur during solar maximum, the most active phase of the sun’s roughly 11-year solar cycle. Scientists cannot pinpoint exactly when this period begins in real time, but several experts believe it has already started. Previously, the solar maximum was forecast to arrive at some point next year and be relatively weak compared to previous solar cycles. However, as the solar cycle progressed, it became clear that the maximum would be more intense than expected. Over the weekend, AR3664 unleashed two additional X-class solar flares, including an X5.89-magnitude blast on May 11, the second-most powerful flare of the current solar cycle. This brings the sunspot’s X-class flare count to seven, making it by far the most active sunspot of the current cycle so far. While one of these additional X-class flares initially raised concerns about extending the weekend’s geomagnetic storm into Monday, further observations showed that the CME from that flare is not directed at Earth. AR3664 is now turning further away from our planet and is unlikely to bombard us with more solar storms for the time being. However, given the rapid progression of the current solar cycle, there is a good chance that we will experience more G4 or G5 disturbances over the next few years.
Earth Hit by Most Powerful Geomagnetic Storm in Over Two Decades
