How tonight's geomagnetic storm could send GPSs haywire and cause havoc for airplanes

READ MORE:Tonight's solar storm could wreak havoc on public transport, cause disruptions for commercial airlines and destroy satellites.

GPS systems become disrupted because when the radiation from the solar flare hits the magnetic sphere surrounding Earth, it causes fluctuations in the ionosphere. Rob Steenburgh, Space Scientist for NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center , said Friday: 'Depending on how interacts with Earth's magnetic field, that magnetic field can fluctuate.'

As the solar flares reach the earth's atmosphere, they emit radiation that hits the magnetic field triggering issues with the power grid and high-frequency radio communications. If the geomagnetic storm reaches a level five, satellites could crash into other objects in space or the atmosphere and suffer physical damage from supercharged 'killer electrons' which would hurtle into important sections of hardware, rendering it useless.

Even if GPS features are affected, people will likely still be able to maintain a map showing their rough location. In 1859, a massive solar flare with the energy of 10 billion atomic bombs sent electrified gas and subatomic particles to Earth - leading many to panic that the world was ending. Researchers at the British Geological Survey in the UK looked at magnetic field recordings of the Carrington Event and determined that although they didn't know the exact levels, a similar event is likely to occur once every 100 to 1,000 years.

Medication production could be directly affected because drug companies use electricity to amp up development and even those that were already completed prior to the blackout need to be kept at specific temperatures which requires, you guessed it, electricity to maintain.

Sciencetech Ohio Alabama California Nuclear Weapons White House Russia-Ukraine Conflict India Moscow Earth ISS Star Wars China

United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Rishi Sunak wants to stop GPs signing people off sick from workRishi Sunak says people should stop 'over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life.'
Source: Metro Newspaper UK - 🏆 61. / 63 Read more »

GPs in Britain could soon be stripped of powers to hand out sick notesRishi Sunak says people should stop 'over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life.'
Source: Metro Newspaper UK - 🏆 61. / 63 Read more »

GPs could lose power to sign people off work amid 'sick note culture'Rishi Sunak is to call for an end to the 'sick note culture' and warn against 'over-medicalising the everyday challenges and worries of life'
Source: leedslivenews - 🏆 118. / 51 Read more »

GPs welcome fit note reform despite mental health charities concernsSunak also unveiled plans that could strip GPs of the right to write fit notes handing them over to other medical professionals
Source: i newspaper - 🏆 8. / 89 Read more »

GPs in Britain could soon be stripped of powers to hand out sick notesAs part of the Prime Minister's plans if he wins the next election, GPs won't be able to give out sick notes, benefits will be removed from people after a year, and people will be made to work more to receive in work benefits.
Source: MetroUK - 🏆 13. / 82 Read more »

Russia accused of jamming GPS signal on flights from UK causing route chaosMore than 3,000 flights have had their GPS signals interfered with in less than a year
Source: i newspaper - 🏆 8. / 89 Read more »