Preamble:
On May 8, 2024, the Sun will erupt again with an X1.0 flare, which will produce charged particles from coronal mass ejections.
After two to three days, it will reach Earth and may cause a geomagnetic storm.
In the past week, the sun has erupted with multiple solar flares of magnitude X or higher.
So what exactly is a solar flare, and will this geomagnetic storm have an impact on humanity itself?
A solar flare is an important manifestation of solar activity, usually produced by the release of energy from a certain area of the sun.
This solar activity is very sudden and large-scale.
And when a solar flare erupts, the sun itself emits various electromagnetic radiations outward.
In addition to this, solar flares have a very intriguing property.
That is, it cannot be directly observed by the human eye, mainly because the background radiation of the sun itself is too strong, so the radiation of solar flares is mostly manifested on some line spectrum.
As early as May 6, the Sun erupted with a solar flare of magnitude X4.5, and three in a row within 25 hours.
This is extremely rare in history, and it is worth noting that these solar flares occurred in the same solar region.
However, the location of the solar flare eruption has changed.
According to relevant media reports, the solar flare erupted in the active area near the center of the corona - 13664.
Depending on the means of observation, we can also divide solar flares into many different types.
The phenomenon of a sudden increase in the brightness of the optical band during the flare eruption is called an optical flare.
In addition, when a flare erupts, the X-ray flux suddenly increases, which is called an X-ray flare.
In addition to this, there are proton flares and white light flares, which were white flares when solar flares were observed for the first time in human history.
However, it is worth noting that the X1.0 flare of this solar eruption is an X-ray flare, and the eruption of this solar flare is slightly different from the previous ones.
The most obvious of these is that, according to relevant professionals, the solar flare eruption was accompanied by a coronal mass ejection.
And after these materials are ejected by the sun, they will fly to the earth at a speed of hundreds or even thousands of kilometers per hour.
According to time calculations, it will arrive on Earth two to three days from the time the flare erupts, that is, around May 10.
In addition, when these projectiles arrive on Earth, they will also cause geomagnetic storms on Earth.
After this information was reported by relevant media, it also received widespread attention from the masses, who said that it would affect their ability to earn 3,000 yuan a month?
Although the words are full of ridicule, it is enough to prove that the public has an interest and worry about such a cosmic event with a low level of understanding.
So will the occurrence of solar flares and geomagnetic storms really have a bad impact on the human body?
First of all, solar flares, in essence, although solar flares are a kind of solar activity, they produce a certain amount of electromagnetic radiation and high-energy particles when they erupt.
However, there will be a large loss in the process of transporting these materials, and only a small part of them will eventually reach the earth.
And because of the presence of a magnetic field on the earth, this remaining part of the matter is almost not harmful to human health.
Therefore, you don't need to worry too much about the recent frequent outbreaks of solar flares, and you don't need to deliberately protect yourself.
However, although solar flares do not have an impact on human health, they do have an impact on other public infrastructure.
When a solar flare erupts, satellites in space are the first to be affected.
This is because the ejective material produced after the eruption of a solar flare can affect radio communications, power grids, and navigation signals, thus affecting satellites.
In severe cases, it can also cause harm to the safety of the satellite itself and the physical body of astronauts.
In addition, solar flares will also affect the orbit of the satellite, and will also accelerate the corrosion of atomic oxygen on the surface of the satellite.
In addition, the outbreak of solar flares will also have a certain impact on ground facilities.
The most obvious of these is the impact on communications and broadcasting.
Normally, shortwave communication is carried out by reflection from the F layer, but when there is a sudden disturbance in the ionosphere, the radio waves weaken. In severe cases, communication interruptions can also occur.
Similarly, when it comes to broadcasting, we in the market will feel that we can't hear clearly, or even listen to the radio broadcast, and this may be caused by a solar flare.
It is believed that when solar flares were frequent a few days ago, similar situations occurred in various places.
It is worth noting that when a solar flare erupts, it will also have a certain impact on navigation.
What you may not know is that navigation is a very low-frequency navigation or communication signal that propagates between a waveguide between the ground and the bottom of the ionosphere.
After a solar flare erupts, the propagation phase delay of low-frequency or very low-frequency signals between the transmitter and receiver changes, resulting in navigation problems.
In severe cases, it can even cause an error of tens of kilometers, so when a solar flare erupts, it is necessary to pay attention when using communication facilities and navigation equipment.
All in all, solar flares are essentially impactful to certain facilities, but not to the human body.
However, geomagnetic storms are very different from solar flares.
A geomagnetic storm is a phenomenon in which the Earth's magnetic field is violently disturbed due to activity on the surface of the Sun, such as solar flares.
Typically, the strength of a geomagnetic storm is determined by the strength of the high-velocity plasma in the solar wind.
And geomagnetic storms are generally divided into three steps from the eruption to the end.
The first step is the initial phase, that is, the fluctuating change in the level of the geomagnetic level above the value level before the eruption of the geomagnetic storm, which generally lasts tens of minutes to several hours.
The second step is the main phase, i.e., the H component drops abruptly and to a minimum in a short period of time, which is the main characteristic of geomagnetic storms.
The third step is the recovery phase, that is, the H component gradually returns to the pre-storm level, but the magnetic field is still disturbed and fluctuated, but the intensity has been weakening at that time.
This process generally lasts two to three days, and the process of geomagnetic storms will not only affect various facilities, but also the human body.
The first is the impact on satellites, when the geomagnetic field is affected by geomagnetic storms, the orbit of the satellite will change.
It will also lead to the non-functioning of communication satellites, and at the same time military and meteorological satellites will not be able to observe the Earth.
In addition, geomagnetic storms will also warm the Earth's upper atmosphere and increase the density of the atmosphere, which will lead to the weakening and even fall of spacecraft.
In addition to these conditions, geomagnetic storms can even cause damage to satellites.
In 2022, a batch of "Starlink" with up to 49 satellites deployed by SpaceX was affected by geomagnetic storms, which eventually caused all 49 satellites to be damaged.
In addition, geomagnetic storms can also affect long-distance transmission grids and oil transmission networks, and will also have a great impact on satellite launch activities.
In addition to the impact on these facilities, the biggest difference between geomagnetic storms and solar flares is that geomagnetic storms can have a certain impact on the human body.
According to relevant media reports, after the geomagnetic storm arrives on the earth, although it will not directly cause harm to human activities, it will have a certain impact on the human body itself.
The first is that geomagnetic storms will cause fluctuations in the magnetic field, which in turn will affect the sleep quality of the human biological clock, which means that it is likely to lead to a decrease in the quality of our daily sleep.
Symptoms of insomnia may occur, and as a result, fatigue and weakness may occur, as well as mood swings due to insufficient rest.
These effects will not cause greater harm to human health for the time being, but in addition to these, geomagnetic storms will still have a more serious impact on the human body.
That is to affect the body's cardiovascular system, and the most likely symptom is that the body's blood pressure will fluctuate inexplicably, thus becoming unstable.
Therefore, when a geomagnetic storm occurs, it is not recommended to engage in strenuous exercise and exertional physical activity.
Otherwise, there is a high risk of an emergency. It is also not recommended to stay outdoors for long periods of time, as it is likely to be more affected.
After this situation was reported, many friends in the south, or those in areas with rainy weather in recent days, will say that it will not have an impact if it rains on a cloudy day.
In terms of time, whether it is a clear sky or a rainy day, it is impossible to avoid the various effects of geomagnetic storms.
At the same time, when this news caused widespread heated discussions in the society, many friends obviously felt the above-mentioned discomfort.
For example, dizziness and decreased sleep quality, some netizens said that the occurrence of geomagnetic storms will also lead to the postponement of women's menstrual periods.
This situation still needs to be investigated, but in general, I hope that everyone will not panic too much. After all, as I said earlier, geomagnetic storms generally don't last too long.
On the whole, the impact on the human body is not particularly large, and it is not to the point of seriously affecting human health.
All in all, the solar ejective material generated by the solar flare eruption will come to the earth to produce a geomagnetic storm, after all, it is only a possibility, so everyone should not be too worried while paying attention to it.
Epilogue:
Whether it is a solar flare or a geomagnetic storm, although it will have a certain impact on the earth's various infrastructure, it is still not particularly serious in general, and even if the geomagnetic storm will have a certain impact on the human body, it will not be too serious.
So everyone still remember to treat this matter rationally, don't panic too much, and don't spread some false information on the Internet, if the geomagnetic storm really erupts, it will only be short-lived, please rest assured.
Resources
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