The flare erupted from the sun’s active region 14341 at about 2:09 a.m. Beijing Time on Monday and was classified as an X1.9 event, placing it in the most intense category of solar eruptions, News.Az reports, citing CGTN.
The flare released a coronal mass ejection (CME) that traveled rapidly through space and reached Earth the following day. Beginning around 2:00 a.m. Beijing Time on Tuesday, Earth’s magnetic field started to show pronounced disturbances as the CME interacted with the planet’s magnetosphere.
Monitoring data indicated that by 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, the geomagnetic storm had produced six hours of extreme activity along with an additional six hours of moderate intensity, highlighting the strength and duration of the solar-driven event.
China's Fengyun-3E satellite detected the geomagnetic disturbances in space, recording a sharp drop in geomagnetic indices as the storm intensified. Meanwhile, the Fengyun-3H satellite provided a stunning cosmic perspective, capturing images of auroras across the Northern Hemisphere that clearly illustrate the affected regions.
The geomagnetic storm brought a rare celestial spectacle to multiple locations in China. On Tuesday night, vibrant auroras were spotted over Mohe in Heilongjiang Province, treating observers to colorful displays in the night sky. These auroras occur when charged particles from solar eruptions interact with the Earth's magnetic field and upper atmosphere.
As a typical solar eruptive event, a CME hurls billions of tonnes of solar material into space at speeds of hundreds of kilometers per second. This material carries enormous kinetic energy from its mass and velocity, along with the sun's powerful magnetic energy. When these particles collide with the Earth's magnetosphere, they disrupt the planet's magnetic field, resulting in a geomagnetic storm.
Fortunately, geomagnetic storms pose no direct threat to human health. The magnetic field changes associated with the storm are extremely weak – weaker than the magnetism of everyday household items like refrigerator magnets or magnetic hooks.
However, the storm does affect aerospace and satellite operations. Low-Earth orbit satellites and space stations may experience orbital altitude drops due to increased atmospheric drag, requiring enhanced orbit monitoring and potential adjustments. Satellite navigation systems may see slight increases in positioning errors, though these changes are unlikely to impact public daily use of navigation tools.
Additionally, intense geomagnetic activity can disrupt animal migration and navigation. For example, homing pigeons – which rely on solar and magnetic cues for direction – are significantly affected by such disturbances.
