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Solar storm began

12 October 2021 13:37 (UTC +04:00)

On the night of October 11, a magnetic storm began in the Earth's magnetosphere. Its level is growing and is already approaching the average level, according to Solar X-ray Astronomy Laboratory of the Institute of Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, APA reports.

There are two magnetic fields at play — the Earth’s and the Interplanetary Magnetic Field carried by the solar wind. While Earth’s magnetic field stays fixed over long periods (100,000s of years), the IMF fluctuates around the equinoxes, creating openings called cracks.

These cracks allow particles from the solar wind to enter the magnetosphere, triggering the auroral displays. The ionization when the solar wind collides with the upper atmosphere creates a variety of colors.