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Illustration of solar wind streaming from a fuming sun drives auroras bright enough to be seen far from the poles, a dazzling signature of an extreme geomagnetic storm. (Nithin Sivadas \/ NASA \/ GSFC via SWNS)<\/p>\n
By Talker<\/p>\n
By Stephen Beech<\/p>\n
Risks of potentially devastating solar storms<\/a> may be underestimated, warns a new study.<\/p>\n And the effects of extreme space weather on life on Earth may be larger than previously thought, say scientists.<\/p>\n It is already known that solar storms can disrupt satellite operations, GPS navigation and high-frequency radio transmissions, as well as trigger vivid auroral displays visible far beyond polar regions.<\/p>\n Extreme geomagnetic storms are temporary disturbances in the plasma and magnetic field around the Earth.<\/p>\n They can also trigger extensive power outages, and even increase how much radiation astronauts and pilots are exposed to.<\/p>\n (Photo by Zelch Csaba via Pexels)<\/p>\n By Talker<\/p>\n For decades, scientists have thought that there is an upper limit to how Earth responds to solar storms<\/a>.<\/p>\n Electric currents in the Earth’s upper atmosphere are widely understood to reach an upper limit with increasing solar wind strength.<\/p>\n But new research suggests the upper limit is an “illusion” resulting from uncertainty in the measurement of the solar wind strength.<\/p>\n The findings, published in the journal Nature<\/a>, mean solar storms could have “far worse” effects on our technology than previously thought.<\/p>\n The study was led by Nithin Sivadas, of NASA<\/a>, and co-authored by Maria Walach, from Lancaster University<\/a> in the U.K.<\/p>\n (Photo by Giona Mason via Pexels)<\/p>\n By Talker<\/p>\n Walach said: “Our planet’s magnetic field does a really great job of protecting us against many space weather effects and so they often just show up as glitches or beautiful aurora.<\/p>\n “There are however extreme cases, where satellites unexpectedly fall back to Earth, or we lose communication and GPS signals.”<\/p>\n She explained that the solar wind is a never-ending stream of hot gases flowing from the sun, which can strengthen during solar eruptions.<\/p>\n Observations have suggested that, as the solar wind strengthens, electric currents in the Earth’s upper atmosphere \u2014 which can affect satellites, communications and navigation signals \u2014 increase to a certain point but then, on average, level off.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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