Geomagnetic storm conditions were at a level four — on a scale of five — on Monday, according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) center.
The US agency added in a statement that these changes may last for several hours, but are not expected to increase in severity.
“The severe geomagnetic storm includes the possibility of weak aurora visibility as far south as Alabama and northern California,” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) explained.
This new solar storm is caused by coronal mass ejections (CMEs), explosions of particles that leave the Sun and, when they arrive, disturb Earth’s magnetic field.
“There are a lot of aurora right now… If it lasts until dusk here, we could see some,” Eric Lagadec, an astrophysicist at the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur in France, explained on social media.
Despite their aesthetic appeal, solar or geomagnetic storms can have undesirable effects. For example, they can disrupt high-frequency communications, disrupt satellites, and overload the electrical grid. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said operators of sensitive infrastructure have been advised to implement measures to mitigate these effects.
In May, the planet was hit by the strongest geomagnetic storms recorded in 20 years, causing auroras that lit up the night sky in the United States, Europe and Australia at latitudes far below normal.
This type of event has been increasing recently as the sun approaches its peak activity after an 11-year cycle.
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