LOS ANGELES, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Space Weather Prediction Center of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a Severe (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch for the evening of Friday.
It is the first severe geomagnetic watch since 2005.
The aurora on Friday night and (or) Saturday morning may become visible over much of the northern half of the country, and maybe as far south as Alabama to northern California, according to NOAA.
NOAA space weather forecasters have observed at least seven coronal mass ejections (CMEs) from the sun, with impacts expected to arrive on Earth as early as midday Friday and persist through Sunday.
CMEs are explosions of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun's corona. They cause geomagnetic storms when they are directed at Earth. Geomagnetic storms can impact infrastructure in near-Earth orbit and on Earth's surface, potentially disrupting communications, the electric power grid, navigation, radio and satellite operations.
