Earth’s Response to Solar Activity
When charged particles from the sun collide with Earth’s magnetic field, they create electrical currents that overload power grids and damage satellite electronics. Solar flares cause radio blackouts differently. When intense X-ray and ultraviolet radiation hits our atmosphere, they supercharge the ionosphere (a layer of charged particles in our upper atmosphere) with extra electrons. This turns the D-layer (the part that normally reflects radio waves) into a radio signal sponge, absorbing transmissions instead of bouncing them back to Earth. Airlines operating polar routes may need to reroute flights during major solar events.