Aurora Can Disrupt Electrical Devices And Even the Grid?

The intro image reference is NASA at NASA Aurora Image.

Moving charge causes a magnetic field. And a magnetic field exerts a force on a moving charge. If electric charged particles stream over the Earth they are capable of producing a magnetic field, which in turn can act with a force to move charged particles in a conductor. This is possible because some electrons in a conductor are free to move producing an electric current in that conductor. This is how a transformer works.

If the magnetic field is changing the conductor responds as though it were moving with respect to the magnetic field. An electric current will occur.

As charged particles pass overhead, the moving charges collectively can produce a strong magnetic field, which in turn passes energy to conductors at the Earth’s surface by inducing those unwanted currents to flow. These unwanted currents can overload electrical grids and damage sensitive electronics.

The Sun is so hot that its matter is in the form of plasma. The atoms and electrons are separated. The plasma acts like a fluid in that it is capable of flowing.

Moving charge causes magnetic fields to form. Actually, because of differential rotation of the Sun, rotation at different rates depending on distance from the solar equator, the magnetic fields twist and contort.

As the movement of electrical charges move they produce magnetic fields that force charged particles upward into coronal loops where magnetic energy becomes stored. These coronal loops can twist until they release the energy releasing the charged particles into space. This usually happens at a sunspot, a swirling solar storm. When sunspots are present there is a danger of a solar flare, or emission of charged particles into space.

Sunspots change their direction of rotation in a period of eleven years. This is because the Sun reverses its magnetic field, the composite of many localized magnetic fields, enery eleven years.

The particles that are released into space at a sunspot by a solar flare are numerous, perhaps the mass of a mountain. These take one to a few days to reach Earth, if they do at all. Their direction must be right to encounter the Earth’s magnetic field.

If the particles encounter the Earth’s magnetic field, they will begin to spiral along the field lines. If the intensity is strong enough charged particles might interact with upper atmospheric atoms and molecules. This drives electrons into higher energy states. Electrons do not remain in higher states long before they settle back to their normal energy states. The difference in energy is released as the lights of aurorae.

There is another effect of the charged particles spiraling along magnetic field lines. If the intensity is strong enough and the charged particles come close enough to the Earth, the particles act like electricity in the primary of a transformer. Wires in the grid and in electronics can act as transformer secondaries and develop stray currents that can cause damage.

Yes. When the solar magnetic field reverses the Sun becomes more active. The activity is not the same for each cycle.

Yes. There is an eleven-year climate cycle. The Earth is usually warmer during increased sunspot activity. But the best evidence is the Sun had a prolonged minimum of about seventy-five years during the Little Ice Age. It cannot be that conditions on Earth would impact the Sun, so it is reasonable to suggest the correlation indicates sunspots are a method by which the Sun can affect the climate on Earth.

The particles that impact the upper atmosphere bring energy with them, so it is reasonable that they would impact climate on the planet.

Aurorae occur at different quantities and different intensities during different years. They can impact Earth, and it is not possible to eliminate the risks.

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