Berlin – A strong plasma eruption in the sun significantly increases the chances of northern lights in our latitudes – you can see them in the sky over the weekend, especially in East Germany.
Cause: Strong plasma eruption in the sun on Thursday evening, As reported by WetterOnline. “As of now, the eruption and the associated mass emissions were precisely grounded. Depending on the speed of the plasma cloud, it will reach Earth in a time window from Friday evening to Saturday evening. From meteorologist Bjorn Goldhausen explains.
NASA / GSFC / SDO
A plasma exploded in the sun.
However, the sky over Germany did not provide the best conditions for surveillance everywhere. The meteorologist explains these possibilities: “Unfortunately, the weather is not right in all parts of the country. Saturday night starts even clearer. However, over time, dense clouds are already gathering in the west, and even light rain in the southwest in the morning. From the Baltic Sea to the edge of the Alps, the sky is generally clear. Chances of seeing the northern lights on Sunday night are diminishing as the dense clouds pass again and again in the east. However, the view of the starry sky there is also now clear. On the other hand, in the western half, the sky is often completely cloudy.
Effects on radio and GPS reception are possible
The current plasma eruption in the sun almost reached the strength of the highest type X. Only in the summer of 2021 did an eruption with similar strength occur. This caused the GPS system to crash for an hour and the radio reception to be interrupted for hours. “However, unlike this time, the eruption occurred at the edge of the sun in the summer and did not move the earth properly,” Goldhausen said. Both eruptions represent the “rising sun.” Although it remained quiet in our fixed star until the end of 2019, activity has increased again since then. The peak of the current solar cycle is expected in the summer of 2025. However, experts consider the cycle to be very weak.
Solar radiation does not cause any problem to people directly. A spokesman for WetterOnline promises that the magnetic field is at its toes and will spread the earth like a protector in space. This seems very complicated to astronauts and pilots because they are sometimes subjected to massive radiation. It remains to be seen how big an impact this system will have on technology systems such as GPS or radio reception. “Extremely severe eruptions that do not include this have the potential to cause large-scale and prolonged power outages – in extreme cases worldwide,” Goldhausen said.
