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VANCOUVER – B. . C.. . According to Hydro, crews are preparing for stormy space weather on Thursday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States. S.. . predicts a G3 or strong category geomagnetic storm on Thursday and a G2 or moderate category storm on Friday.
A geomagnetic storm, according to NOAA, is a major disturbance in the Earth’s magnetosphere that occurs when there is a very efficient exchange of energy from the solar wind into the space environment surrounding the Earth.
The agency says if the charged particles hit Earth, they could cause aurora borealis or northern lights as far as Iowa, Pennsylvania and Oregon.
B. . C.. . Hydro said Wednesday it was preparing for a strong solar magnetic storm that could lead to power outages. Solar magnetic storms are gusts of charged particles that come from the sun and can potentially seriously damage high voltage transmission systems and lead to failures, says Brett Hallborg, senior system control manager at B. . C.. . Hydro.
“It leads to malfunctions in our power supply systems. This could lead to a widespread blackout, as happened in Quebec in the 1980s. ”
However,
Hallborg says this is a worst case scenario and customers are unlikely to notice anything. He says they never had a problem with geomagnetic storms in the 30 years he was at B. C.. . Hydro.
“Our plan is to make the power systems as robust as possible,” he says. This includes device recovery and enhanced surveillance.
The electromagnetic storm increased over three days from G1, which is minor, to G2, and then to G3 on Thursday, which is strong, he says.
« The currents that might be induced in the earth’s surface are what we’re nervous about, » he says.
Aurora, geomagnetic storm, sun, solar flare, earth
World News – CA – B. . C.. . Hydro prepares for a strong geomagnetic storm
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Ref: https://www.timescolonist.com
