Solar Storm to Hit Earth, Adding Dazzle to the Northern Lights
Airlines and grid operators on notice for geomagnetic disturbances.
A satellite captured a solar flare -- the white area near the top and center -- that happened March 28.
Source: NOAAThis article is for subscribers only.
A solar storm will sweep across the Earth Wednesday night, raising prospects of dazzling Northern Lights visible as far south as Chicago while prompting airlines and electric-grid operators to step up monitoring of the potentially damaging geomagnetic activity.
Solar eruptions—called coronal mass ejections—burst from the sun in two waves Monday and are building up enough energy to potentially become a level 3 geomagnetic storm when it hits, according to Rob Steenburgh, a space scientist with the U.S. Space Weather Prediction Center.