A large cloud of plasma, formed as a result of solar flares, is currently approaching the Earth. The head of the Solar Astronomy Laboratory at the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Sergei Bogachev, spoke about this, RIA Novosti writes.
According to the specialist, an “extremely unfavorable” geomagnetic forecast has been formed for the next two days.
“Observations show that yesterday’s X1.8 flare was accompanied by an exceptionally high-speed plasma ejection that will reach the Earth today, and, according to some estimates, already in the middle of the day,” he specified.
Bogachev added that another powerful flare was recently recorded on the Sun. She was assigned level X9.1.
But then the ejection only touched the Earth with its edge, so no significant changes in the planet’s geomagnetic field occurred. Nevertheless, now “it will not be possible to evade the plasma cloud,” the head of the laboratory emphasized.
The specialist noted that in the most unfavorable scenario, magnetic storms approaching the Earth could be assigned the fifth level, which is considered the highest. However, the most plausible scenario involves magnetic storms of the fourth level. Their duration, in turn, will be up to two days.
