A shock wave from space pierced a hole in Earth’s magnetosphere: what could be the consequences?

Last night, a shock wave flew to Earth, which left a crack in the planet’s magnetosphere protecting all life from destructive cosmic radiation, DailyMail reports.

Currently, astronomers don’t yet know for sure where this shock wave came from, but they suggest our Sun may have initiated it. The star may have ejected a stream of highly superheated and magnetized gas, also known as a coronal mass ejection (CME).

The gas release may have occurred in the AR3165 sunspot area, which became the source of at least 8 solar flares on 14 December.

While there is no reason to panic, scientists say such holes in Earth’s magnetosphere could remain open for hours without significant consequences.

Active since December 14, the sunspot exploded in an M6 class explosion. It was noted that flashes of this class are of medium power, and they can temporarily shut down the radio communication that occurred over the Atlantic last week.

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded how the aforementioned sunspot ejected streams of plasma one at a time.

Earth’s magnetosphere stretches thousands of kilometers into space and influences everything from GPS to animal migration to the planet’s weather patterns.

The resulting crack in the magnetosphere can cause class G1 geomagnetic storms. A geomagnetic storm is a disruption of the planet’s magnetosphere that occurs under the influence of the solar wind.

However, scientists emphasize that a G1 geomagnetic storm is the weakest possible storm.

At this time, the Sun has entered the active period of its 11-year cycle. It started in 2019 and will peak in 2025.

Recall that recently astronomers saw an ominous smile on the surface of the Sun. On the surface of the star, oddly enough, there were three large dots oriented towards Earth.