Warning of ongoing solar storms: Will Vietnam be affected today, January 22nd?

The latest solar storm warning from EarthSky.com indicates that solar activity has continued unabated over the past few days. Auroras continue to appear at high latitudes as the Earth remains affected by the strong and intense solar wind remaining after the coronal mass ejection (CME) on January 18th.

Solar storms have been continuously hitting Earth in recent days.

PHOTO: NASA

Geomagnetic conditions remained high, sometimes reaching level 4 (severe) as strong magnetic fields and high-speed plasma poured into near-Earth space, energizing the upper atmosphere and keeping aurora observers "busy" in Anchorage, Reykjavik, and Northern Scandinavia.

Meanwhile, the sun continued to show instability, with the most intense outbursts during this period being the M3.4 outburst from sunspot AR4349 near its southeastern edge, causing a small R1 radio wave loss over the southern Indian Ocean. Proton radiation also remained high, a lingering sign from the earlier heliospheric mass ejection (CME).

What is the forecast for today's solar storm, January 22nd?

According to experts, although the solar storm situation eased on January 21st as the CME's influence gradually diminished, additional geomagnetic storms still appeared early in the day. On January 21st, Earth was still experiencing a geomagnetic storm (G4). When will it end?

Moderate outbreak activity is expected to continue, with the possibility of M-type outbreaks mainly originating from spots AR4342 and AR4345. There is still a slight possibility of another X-type outbreak.

The solar storm forecast for January 22nd indicates that activity will gradually subside to an unstable level as the influence of the coronal hole persists and the remaining effects of the CME fade. Short periods of storm are still possible, depending on how long the CME's magnetic field maintains a favorable southward orientation.

Smaller storms may have little impact on Vietnam because, as a general rule, the closer a place is to the pole, the greater the impact. Meanwhile, Vietnam is near the equator, so the intensity of the impact is significantly reduced.

Solar storms affect telecommunications systems, GPS navigation, telecommunications communications, and satellite television to varying degrees.

PHOTO: TRAN NGUYEN MINH QUAN

However, with the recent G4 geomagnetic storm, considered the strongest in 20 years, potentially affecting the entire globe, including Vietnam, we may experience some degree of disruption to our telecommunications systems, GPS navigation, telecommunications communications, and satellite television.

Strong geomagnetic storms can also affect the health of people wearing medical devices with electrical circuits, such as pacemakers. People with pacemakers should limit their time outdoors when these events occur.

Below are the geomagnetic storm scales:

1. Geomagnetic storm scale G1 (Small): Satellite effect and small-scale energy; may produce auroras near polar regions.

2. G2 (Medium): Voltage surges may occur; auroras may be formed at mid-latitudes.

3. G3 (Strong): May cause problems with GPS and HF (high frequency) radio; may lead to widespread aurora borealis far from the poles.

4. G4 (Severe): May cause power grid instability; aurora borealis may appear at low latitudes.

5. G5 (Extremely severe): Widespread power outage and loss of orientation; auroras may appear far from the poles.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/canh-bao-bao-mat-troi-lien-tuc-tan-cong-hom-nay-221-viet-nam-co-bi-anh-huong-185260121183941422.htm