Our sun has unexpectedly begun to ramp up its activity, which could lead to more severe solar storms that cause blackouts and disrupt global communications.
NASA revealed that our solar system's home star had been getting quieter and weaker for about 20 years, but that surprisingly changed in 2008 and scientists are still trying to figure out why.
Scientists found that since 2008, the sun's solar wind, which are streams of charged particles, has grown stronger, with increases in speed, density, temperature, and magnetic field strength.
This increased solar activity could lead to more powerful solar storms, which regularly hit Earth and cause disruptions.
Geomagnetic storms have the potential to damage power grids, leading to blackouts, interfere with satellites, and disrupt communication systems like GPS.
Stronger storms could also make the Northern Lights visible in more places further south of the north pole, but the risk to technology and infrastructure will require careful monitoring.
The exact timing and strength of these storms are hard to predict, but they could become more frequent as the sun's current 11-year cycle peaks between 2025 and 2026.
Lead study author Jamie Jasinski of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California said: 'All signs were pointing to the sun going into a prolonged phase of low activity. So it was a surprise to see that trend reversed. The sun is slowly waking up.'
More activity means more sunspots, solar flares, and potentially hazardous ejections of material from the sun.
On Earth, this could shrink our magnetosphere, the protective magnetic bubble around our planet, exposing us to more solar particles.
The increased solar particle exposure can pose a risk for astronauts, who could face higher radiation levels during space missions, potentially leading to health issues.
It could also damage satellites and spacecraft, disrupting communications and navigation systems critical for daily life.
Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service suffered widespread issues during the peak of a strong geomagnetic storm late Sunday night.
The problems started just before midnight, with more than 50,000 reports from Starlink users as a fresh barrage of solar storms hit Earth.
Additionally, solar particles could interfere with Earth's upper atmosphere, potentially affecting ozone levels and increasing ultraviolet radiation reaching people outdoors.
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