FYI the alert they sent out earlier today expires at 0600 UTC, and the current predictions along with the dropping values this afternoon indicate that the worst of it has already passed us. The Kp index did get up to 8.0 around 4 hours ago though, which is fairly high (not quite enough to see aurora in Boulder though).
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BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Space weather forecasters have issued a geomagnetic storm watch through Monday, saying an ouburst of plasma from a solar flare could interfere with radio transmissions on Earth.
There’s no reason for the public to be concerned, according to the alert issued Saturday by NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colorado.
The storm could interrupt high-frequency radio transmissions, such as by aircraft trying to communicate with distant traffic control towers.
Most commercial aircraft can use satellite transmission as backup, said Jonathan Lash, a forecaster at the center.
Satellite operators might have trouble tracking their spacecraft, and power grids could also see some “induced current” in their lines, though nothing they can’t handle, he said.
Every 11 years, the sun’s magnetic field flips, meaning its north and south poles switch positions.
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