A powerful solar flare that has triggered one of the largest space weather storms in at least four years has disrupted some ground communications, according to University of Colorado-Boulder scientists.
Solar coronal mass ejections, such as the Class X flare on Tuesday, can cause a variety of socioeconomic and safety issues such as disruption of airline navigation systems, satellite operations, power grids and safety of airline crews and astronauts.
“The sun is coming back to life,” said Dan Baker, director of CU’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said several more strong ejections may reach Earth’s atmosphere in the next day or two.
“We understand much more about what is happening and can build more robust systems to withstand the effects,” Baker said. “It will be interesting to see how well our technological systems will withstand the rigors of space weather as the sun gets back to higher activity levels.”
Ann Schrader: 303-954-1967 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
