A severe geomagnetic storm struck Earth Tuesday morning.
Scientists say the storm is rated as G4 on a scale that has a maximum of G5. The storm is the strongest to hit the planet during the current 11-year solar cycle.
The Space Weather Prediction Center says the storm could bring voltage control problems at many power systems. Also electrical systems and devices in areas like Alaska and Canada could be damaged by the intensity of the storm.
The storm could also impact GPS and other satellite based systems throughout the day.
The NWPC says the storm was created by sun activity on March 15th.
The last major storm to strike the planet was January 7th when a G3 rated storm passed over the planet.
Scientists tracking the sun’s activity say the star has gone quiet and the solar maximum for Solar Cycle 24 has likely ended as one of the weakest in over a century.
The weaker than normal solar cycle means that “space weather” has been relatively benign with geomagnetic storms that were much less than feared in early predictions of the solar maximum.
Scientists are warning, however, that in the downturn of weak solar cycles there is a significant possibility of serious solar storms. Strong solar flares are still possible as the sun begins to wind down over the next few years to the solar minimum.
History also shows that a weaker solar cycle means that temperatures on the Earth will be lower than average.
In the last two major periods of low solar activity, 1645 to 1715 and 1790 to 1830, the Earth recorded below-normal temperatures with the latter era being called a “Little Ice Age.” The weaker solar winds can lead to more clouds that keep the Earth cooler by blocking more solar rays.
Some solar scientists say the next cycle, Cycle #25, could be weaker than this one.