From the article:
- Every 11 years, the sun expels super-heated particles in a solar storm that’s expected to hit earth this Friday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warns. “We are about to get a blast from outer space, literally,” writes Ken Silverstein at Energybiz.com.
- These solar storms are considered a “geomagnetic disturbance” that can damage satellites and power grids, costing $3-$6 billion in lost production on the grid. “Solar storms introduce ‘direct currents,’ or DC, into the power system. That can cause transformers to saturate, which degrades their performance and produces other undesirable effects such as equipment heating."
- Some regions are at higher risk than others, including Canada, the northern United States and Scandinavia.
From the article:
“If the power grid were to get tripped at one of its interconnections, it could set off a series of cascading events all along the system. The further electricity travels, the more risks there are from harmful electric currents caused by solar weather.”