An amazing natural phenomenon was observed in the night sky above the village of Tartakiv in the Lviv region — a bright aurora borealis that painted the sky in fantastic colours. This rare sight was made possible by a powerful G4-level magnetic storm — one of the strongest at the present stage.
The author of this impressive photograph is Iryna Kovaliv, who managed to capture a magical moment when the sky over Ukraine was ablaze with multicoloured waves.
What caused the aurora borealis?
The aurora borealis was caused by a G4-class magnetic storm. According to the classification, this is one of the highest categories of geomagnetic storms, second only to G5. The last storm of similar intensity was observed in 2003, and at that time it also caused a number of technical failures.
Possible consequences of the storm
Experts warn that storms of this magnitude can have a negative impact on various areas:
- interruptions in the operation of satellites, in particular navigation systems (GPS);
- power grid failures;
- disruption in the operation of communication systems operating at high radio frequencies (from 3 to 30 MHz).
Despite the potential risks, for many Ukrainians this event was a unique opportunity to see a rare atmospheric phenomenon with their own eyes.