Huge solar storm to hit Earth on March 15, could damage satellites

Image credit: NASA

New Delhi: A massive solar storm, also known as the geomagnetic storm, is expected to hit the Earth on Thursday, March 15.

The storm can disrupt satellites and various forms of electronic communications, knock out power supplies, and trigger stunning auroras.

According to a report in the Daily Mail, the massive solar storm was created last week by an enormous explosion in the sun's atmosphere known as a solar flare, and charged particles from that flare are now on their way to our planet.

As per reports, the storm’s arrival coincides with the formation of ‘equinox cracks’ in the Earth’s magnetic field, which experts believe form around the equinoxes on March 20 and September 23 every year.

The geomagnetic storm is a temporary disturbance of the Earth’s magnetic field caused by radiation and streams of charged particles from the Sun.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a 'G1' storm watch.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in a statement, "A minor geomagnetic storm watch is now in effect for March 14 and 15, 2018. Aurora may be visible at high latitudes.”

In the past, large-scale geomagnetic events have disrupted communication satellites and knocked out power supplies.

Geomagnetic storms are rated on a scale of G1 to G5, with the latter being the most extreme.

Carrington Event in 1859 is considered the strongest geomagnetic storm on record.