Massive solar storm hits the earth - highest warning level from NASA

A "massive" solar storm is on its way to Earth.

From Thursday there was a strong solar flare, NASA warns of effects on Earth.

Something is brewing in our galaxy *.

The US Federal Agency for Space and Aviation Science warns that on the last weekend in October 2021 a "massive solar storm" will hit the earth.

The experts describe the solar storm as a “significant solar flare”, according to NASA the natural spectacle should “hit the world directly”.

The solar storm had already broken out on Thursday, October 28th, so the effects should be felt on earth over the course of the weekend, as reported by 24hamburg.de *.

Solar storm will "hit earth directly" on October 31, 2021 - NASA fears massive failures

With the solar storm, which is supposed to penetrate the atmosphere on Saturday or Sunday, extensive power and communication failures are expected. If a solar storm hits the earth, it is called a "flare". Flares only last a few minutes, during which, however, the amount of energy radiated by the sun increases sharply in the form of X-rays and hard UV radiation. This radiation in turn intensifies the ionization of the uppermost layers of the atmosphere - which can have an impact on shortwave propagation and also the accuracy of location determinations via GPS. Solar storms can have dramatic effects on the Internet structure in particular - and lead to massive failures there. This is exactly what NASA expects for the current weekend.According to NASA experts, the solar flare is also increasingly causing auroras, which could also be observed in Germany on Friday *. Even if the sun makes life on earth possible in the first place, it can still pose a threat - especially in the long term. Experts are already predicting that the sun will even devour the earth at some point *.

+

Solar storms can pose a threat to the earth.

© Nasa / SDO / dpa

Solar storm is hurtling towards the earth: NASA classifies it in the highest warning level of class "X"

For humans, the radiation from the depths of the Milky Way * of the solar storm is not dangerous, but if it is "intense enough, it can disturb the atmosphere in the layer in which GPS and communication signals are transmitted," explains a spokesman for NASA.

The solar storm is classified in the strongest warning level class "X", but in the lowest level "1".

In the case of X2, the effect would already be twice as strong, from class X10 onwards, the US space agency speaks of an "unusually intense" eruption.

Solar storm is particularly intense - the reason is the start of a new solar cycle

The sun * is currently at the beginning of a new 11-year solar cycle, which makes such eruptions more intense and extreme.

By 2025, these events could have peaked.

Then humanity can probably prepare for even greater effects on earth.

However, according to NASA calculations, it will take several centuries until the earth's air will run out due to the extreme heat of the sun and life is no longer possible *.

What is a solar storm: how a sunburst occurs

Solar flares are the events when masses are accidentally shot from inside the sun into the orbit of the planet.

The mass consists of so-called plasma in gas form, since the sun has no massive mass.

The sun can be imagined as a glowing ball of gas.

Charged particles such as electrons and protons move in the plasma, i.e. negative and positive particles that interact with one another.

When the solar storm hits Earth, the Earth's magnetic fields may be temporarily disrupted.

Solar storms worry NASA less than near-Earth missiles: Comet and asteroids approaching

Current warnings and threats, on the other hand, are already preoccupying NASA and international space researchers in the here and now: Experts even before a mega-comet rushing to earth *.

Even asteroids * keep coming ominously close to the earth - problem: There is currently no functioning defense technology, as a NASA simulation, which worries experts *, recently showed.

To prevent an asteroid impact, Airbus is working on a rescue plan * - as are numerous other space and research teams around the world.

After all, even smaller meteorids can be a threat * if they hit Earth directly.

List of rubric lists: © Jürgen Fälchle / Adobe Stock