NASA predicts terrifying double solar storms to strike the Earth today. All you need to know

NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) has warned about two possible solar storms or coronal mass ejections(CMEs) that are expected to partially make contact with the Earth today at around 5:30 PM IST. 

When the large CMEs strike the magnetic field of the Earth or magnetosphere, they can lead to large disturbances called geomagnetic storms, noted Space.com. These disturbances can lead to adverse effects on Earth like disruption in power and communication facilities along with radio blackouts and GPS services getting affected.

Space weather scientist Dr. Tamitha Skov shared some images of the CMEs captured by Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph Experiment (LASCO) placed inside SOHO spacecraft. She tweeted, “The Sun launches double punch #solarstorms on #July4th! NASA prediction shows impact before noon July 7 UTC. The first storm is slower & will go mainly northeast. The second is faster & more a direct hit. Fast solar wind follows. G1-level possible with #aurora to mid-latitudes.”

Dr Skov informed in a Twitter thread that the first solar storm is slower and is mainly expected to go northeast and will arrive before 5:30 pm IST. Meanwhile, the second CME is coming faster and is expected to be more of a direct hit on the Earth. The solar storm is going ‘slightly southward’ and could arrive in the early hours of July 7.

The scientist also informed that the CMEs could possibly lead to a G-1 level geomagnetic storm on Earth which could potentially impact power grids and lead to radio blackouts.