A solar Storm from Hole in the Sun will Hit Earth on Wednesday

On Wednesday, August 3, the Earth’s magnetic field is expected to be hit by fast solar Storm winds coming from a “hole” in the sun’s atmosphere, which will cause a mild G-1 geomagnetic storm. After noticing that “gaseous material is leaking from a southern hole in the sun’s atmosphere,” forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) made the prediction, according to spaceweather.com.

Coronal holes are regions of cooler, less dense electrified gas (or plasma) in the sun’s upper atmosphere. These are also the locations where the magnetic field lines of the sun shoot outward into space rather than looping back in on themselves. According to the Exploratorium, a scientific museum in San Francisco, this allows solar material to surge out in a torrent that may move up to 1.8 million miles per hour (2.9 million kilometres per hour).

This bombardment of solar material is absorbed by planets with powerful magnetic fields, including our own, which sets forth geomagnetic storms. The waves of extremely energetic particles that form during these storms partially compress the Earth’s magnetic field. These particles agitate atmospheric molecules as they travel along magnetic field lines close to the poles, releasing energy as light to produce auroras that are vivid and resemble the Northern Lights.

There won’t be much of a storm created by this material. Being a G1 geomagnetic storm, it might have a small impact on power grids and some satellite operations, such as GPS and mobile device functionalities. Additionally, it will bring the aurora as far south as Maine and Michigan.