Scientists are watching closely a large solar flare that occurred Wednesday afternoon. The flare is the result of two coronal mass ejections that have happened in the last two days and it is making its way toward Earth. So far the scientists predict that the flare will pass over us at the North Pole as opposed to a direct hit, but they are keeping a close eye on it because they aren't sure what it will do. The flare is expected to make some contact with our atmosphere sometime on the 13th of September and the Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a strong warning for a Geomagnetic Storm Watch.
The storm has the potential to have an effect on power grids, communication systems, and GPS, as well as damage satellites and interfere with airplane communication systems. In 1989 a massive solar storm affected the power grid in Quebec, Canada, knocking out power for over twelve hours, as well as affecting power grids across the United States.
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