NOAA’s severe space weather watch suggests the storm could trigger numerous effects for life on Earth, possibly affecting the power grid as well as satellite and high frequency radio communications.
Moreover, the changes to the ionosphere can block or degrade radio transmissions trying to pass through the atmosphere to reach satellites.
And they can also prevent radio transmissions from successfully bouncing off the ionosphere — which some radio operators normally do to increase the range of their signals.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency outlined a similar report in a 2021 presentation on space weather, finding that line-of-sight radio transmissions are generally not affected by space weather except in specific situations.
The largest known geomagnetic storm in history, known as the Carrington Event of 1859, caused telegraph stations to spark and catch fire.
Persons:
Washington CNN — Buckle, “ SWPC, Ashley Strickland
Organizations:
Washington CNN, Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, Communications, NOAA, Prediction, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Infrastructure Security Agency
Locations:
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, Quebec, Canada, Sweden, South Africa