WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. — The following special weather statement was issued by the Seattle office of the National Weather Service about 6pm on Friday, May 10th.
The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center has observed extreme (G5) geomagnetic conditions Friday afternoon and expects severe (G4) conditions to continue through the weekend.
A geomagnetic storm of this strength can cause multiple and widespread issues with various power and communications systems. Widespread voltage control problems may occur, and some power grid systems may experience component failures, disruption of service, and protective device trips. This could result in blackouts.
GPS and other satellite navigation may be degraded for days.
HF/VHF/UHF radio propagation may be impossible in many areas for one to two days. Low-frequency radio navigation can be out for hours.
Aurora may be visible at much lower latitudes.
Discover more from Whatcom News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.