Magnetic storms caused by solar flares can disrupt radio communications and create impressive aurora borealis

Space weather forecasters have announced they will be monitoring the geomagnetic storm through Monday, saying explosions of plasma from solar flares could interfere with radio communications on Earth. It may also be a great time to see the aurora borealis.

There is no reason for the public to be concerned, according to alarm NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado, made the announcement on Saturday.

Storms can disrupt high-frequency radio communications by aircraft and others trying to communicate with distant control towers. Jonathan Rush, the center’s forecaster, said most commercial aircraft can use satellite communications as a backup.

Satellite operators may have trouble tracking the spacecraft, and power grids may experience some “induced currents” in power lines, though nothing they can’t handle, he said.

“For the general public, if it’s a clear night at high latitudes, it will be a great opportunity to see the sky light up,” Rush said.

Every 11 years, the sun’s magnetic field reverses. This means that the positions of her north and south poles of the sun will be swapped. Solar activity changes during its cycle and we are now nearing its most active period, called solar maximum.

At times like this, Rush said, geomagnetic storms of the type that arrived Sunday can hit the Earth several times a year. During solar minimum, storms can take years to form.

In December, radio communications were disrupted by the largest solar flare in years.