Geomagnetic storm THREAT! Sun blasts powerful CME towards the Earth

tech.hindustantimes.com:

After a brief period of quiet this week and narrowly escaping a strong possibility of an X-class solar flare eruption, now the Earth is faced with the prospect of being pummeled by a geomagnetic storm. This particular storm can strike our planet today, January 14, or even January 15. As a result of multiple medium solar flares erupting earlier in the week, a cloud of coronal mass ejections (CME) was released from the surface of the Sun and it is headed in our direction. If it hits us, there could be dire consequences. But will it strike us? Read on to find out.

According to a report by SpaceWeather.com, “Minor G1-class geomagnetic storms are possible on Jan. 14-15 in response to glancing blows from one or more CMEs. The storm clouds were hurled into space by the collective activity of many flares earlier this week”. However, the report also underlined that none of the CMEs are pointed towards the Earth and there is a chance that it may miss us entirely. Things will get clearer as the solar clouds approach closer.

If you think geomagnetic storms can only cause aurora light displays, then think again. CME particles carry a huge amount of magnetic energy. And when it strikes the magnetosphere around Earth, it can create massive magnetic flux. This can affect nearby satellites and damage the instruments aboard them. In fact, if it corrupts a satellite's central system, it can even crash.

But the impact of geomagnetic storms is not limited to the upper atmosphere. If a storm is particularly strong (G-5 class), it can damage GPS, impact mobile networks and internet connectivity as well as cause power grid failure. It can also cause malfunctions in our electronic devices. But even if this geomagnetic storm strikes us, the current