- Israel strikes central Beirut, killing 22
- Solar storm could impact US hurricane recovery efforts: agency
- Delta eyes Election Day travel pullback as profits climb
- Florida battered by hurricane, floods but spared 'worst-case scenario'
- UK's William and Kate in first joint public engagement since cancer treatment
- Over 200 women in legal talks with Harrods over Fayed abuse claims
- A very stiff breeze: BBC says sorry for 20,000 kph wind forecast
- Musk finally unveiling his long-promised robotaxi
- London's Frieze art fair goes potty for ceramics
- US, Europe stocks fall on US inflation data
- US consumer inflation eases to 2.4% in September
- Hurricane Milton tornadoes kill four in Florida amid rescue efforts
- South Korea's Han Kang wins literature Nobel
- Ikea posts fall in annual sales after lowering prices
- Stock markets diverge, oil gains after China rebounds
- World can't 'waste time' trading climate change blame: COP29 hosts
- South Korean same-sex couples make push for marriage equality
- Mumbai declares day of mourning for Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- 7-Eleven owner restructures to fight takeover
- Sri Lanka recovering faster than expected: World Bank
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as most markets track Wall St record
- Uniqlo owner reports record annual earnings
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as markets track Wall St record
- Indonesia biomass drive threatens key forests: report
- Mumbai mourns Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- China opens $71 bn 'swap facility' to boost markets
- Asian markets track Wall St record as Hong Kong, Shanghai stabilise
- 'Denying my potential': women at Japan's top university call out gender imbalance
- China's central bank says opens up $70.6 bn in liquidity to boost market
- Youth facing unprecedented wave of violence, UN envoy warns
- 'A casino in every kitchen': Brazil's online gambling craze
- Nobel chemistry winner sees engineered proteins solving tough problems
- Discord seen as online home for renegades
- US forecasts severe solar storm starting Thursday
- Ratan Tata: Indian mogul who built a global powerhouse
- One dead as storm Kirk tears through Spain, Portugal, France
- Indian business titan Ratan Tata dead at 86
- Fed minutes highlight divisions over rate cut decision
- Steve McQueen debuts new WWII film at London festival
- Nobel winners hope protein work will spur 'incredible' breakthroughs
- What are proteins again? Nobel-winning chemistry explained
- AI steps into science limelight with Nobel wins
- Overshooting 1.5C risks 'irreversible' climate impact: study
- Demis Hassabis, from chess prodigy to Nobel-winning AI pioneer
- Global stocks diverge as Chinese shares tumble
- Time runs out in Florida to flee Hurricane Milton
- Chad issues warning ahead of more devastating floods
- Creator's death no bar to new 'Dragon Ball' products
- Chinese stocks tumble on lack of fresh stimulus
- Trio wins chemistry Nobel for protein design, prediction
Solar storm could impact US hurricane recovery efforts: agency
Severe geomagnetic storm conditions could hamper ongoing recovery efforts for Hurricanes Helene and Milton by disrupting satellite communications, power grids and GPS services, the US Space Weather Prediction Center warned Thursday.
A coronal mass ejection (CME) struck Earth this morning at 11:17 am (1517 GMT), disrupting the Earth's magnetic field and quickly achieving G4 (severe) geomagnetic storm conditions at 12:57 pm, the agency said.
It comes as the Sun approaches -- or is possibly at -- the peak of its 11-year cycle, when activity is heightened.
The storm is expected to persist through today and into tomorrow, with the potential to reach G5 (extreme) levels -- the highest category of geomagnetic storms -- last seen in May, where they produced vivid auroras visible far from the poles.
The SWPC said it has alerted the Federal Emergency Management Agency and state agencies, which are already stretched thin as they respond to the aftermath of Helene and Milton.
"Infrastructure operators have been notified to take action to mitigate any possible impacts," said the SWPC.
CMEs -- massive clouds of plasma and their accompanying magnetic fields ejected by the Sun -- can wreak havoc with Earth's magnetosphere, which shields the planet from particle radiation.
They can interfere with satellites, radio signals, and GPS positioning systems.
They also pose a threat to power grids: the "Halloween Storms" of October 2003 triggered blackouts in Sweden and damaged power infrastructure in South Africa.
May's storms rendered precision GPS systems used by US farmers across the Midwest and Great Plains unusable, resulting in financial losses.
They also caused some high-voltage transformers to trip, though without large-scale disruption to the grid. Around 5,000 satellites required orbital adjustments due to increased atmospheric drag, SWPC's Shawn Dahl said during a briefing on Wednesday.
For those in favorable latitudes -- potentially as far south as northern California or Alabama in the United States -- the auroras will be most visible away from city lights, in the darkest skies possible.
Smartphone cameras may be able to capture the celestial display even when it's not visible to the naked eye.
M.Mendoza--CPN