It is not a common phenomenon. That’s why it surprised citizens in different regions of that country. What caused it? A storm of enormous power. It is not just anything: it is the magnetic storm over Russia, which generated huge northern lights.
Strong storm
This phenomenon of strong impact affected the earth’s atmosphere. And it was what triggered a rare phenomenon in some areas of Russia.
When was the storm experienced most strongly? April 23 and 24. Citizens of the European part of Russia saw northern lights in many places. St. Petersburg, Tver, Moscow and even in Ryazan. They occur in these areas less frequently than in the northern part of the Eurasian country.
The strength of magnetic storms is rated on a five-point scale. A G1 level storm is considered the weakest. A magnetic storm of levels G1 to G4 (weak to very strong) occurred in Moscow from the afternoon of April 23, 2023. The peak was exceeded around midnight on April 24.
The magnetic storm is predicted to subside in the second half of the day on April 24. This is reported by the laboratory of X-ray astronomy of the Sun of the Institute of Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The opinion is shared by the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Other effects
Solar flares can cause magnetic storms on Earth. These in turn cause disruptions in power grids and affect the migratory routes of birds and animals. Strong storms are capable of producing disruptions in shortwave communications. They affect navigation systems, generating electrical failures in industrial networks.
Importantly, increased solar activity can extend the geographic range of auroral observations. The magnetic storm over Russia has highlighted this.
