Solar storms have influenced our history – an environmental historian explains how they could also threaten our future

By: Dagomar Degroot, Georgetown University

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: October 28, 2025

Words: 1,393

Last Updated: 4 weeks ago

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By Dagomar Degroot, Georgetown University

In May 2024, part of the Sun exploded.

The Sun is an immense ball of superheated gas called plasma. Because the plasma is conductive, magnetic fields loop out of the solar surface. Since different parts of the surface rotate at different speeds, the fields get tangled. Eventually, like rubber bands pulled too tight, they can snap – and that is what they did last year.

These titanic …

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