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The Northern Lights crossed France during the month of May, offering an extraordinary spectacle to millions of people. But the extremely rare passage of this natural phenomenon could well happen again this year. Indeed, scientists estimate that other northern lights could descend much further south than usual in 2024 and 2025.
The Sun is in great shape
To understand how these northern lights are visible, we must go back to the source, the Sun. It is immense geomagnetic storms on its surface which are at the origin of the northern lights. As they cross the Earth, these storms ionize the air, particularly at the poles where the Earth's magnetic field is thinner.
The more powerful a storm, the more the Northern Lights will be visible at low latitudes. However, to produce powerful storms, the Sun must reach an unprecedented level of activity. And that’s good, that’s precisely the case this year.
The daylight does not shine in the same way every day. It follows its own 11-year cycle. In 2024 it will reach its “maximum intensity”. This is the time when the most powerful storms are most likely to occur.
New powerful storms approaching ?
It is very difficult for scientists to predict solar activity . Solar storms are undetectable until the last moment, and material ejections are rare. Despite the solar maximum soon to be reached by the day's star, there is no 100% assurance that new Northern Lights will appear in the sky, even less so in France.
The last time the Sun experienced such activity, with immense northern lights, was in 2003. According to scientists, it is possible that new storms will occur in the coming months, but there is no way to know. advance whether they will be more or less powerful than those which swept the Earth this month.
The Northern Lights: A Dangerous Sight
Although they are the dream of many photographers, the Northern Lights are as beautiful as they are devastating. The recent passage of a geomagnetic storm was a real challenge for objects orbiting the Earth.
The latter are not protected by the magnetic field of our planet and they therefore bear the brunt of the effects of these storms. Satellites can thus be damaged by these storms.
This is particularly the case for GPS constellations, located very high in the sky. For them, the passage of a storm is a real challenge. Astronauts on the ISS are also closely monitored during the passage of a solar storm. Very powerful electromagnetic radiation could have long-term effects on the development of certain diseases such as cancer.
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