--- title: "Here’s What Happens When a Solar Storm Slams Into the Earth" description: "A team of scientists used data collected by the European Space Agency's Cluster mission to map out Earth's \"eerie song\" it sings during a solar storm." date: "2019-11-18" modified: "2019-11-18" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/solar-storm-slams-earth" categories: - "Energy" - "Renewable Energy" - "Science & Energy" - "Solar Power" tags: - "solar storm" - "solar storms" - "solar wind" - "the digest" --- # Here’s What Happens When a Solar Storm Slams Into the Earth ![A team of scientists used data collected by the European Space Agency's Cluster mission to map out Earth's "eerie song" it sings during a solar storm.]() *\Image: ESA\* ## Eerie Song A team of scientists from the University of Helsinki used data collected by the European Space Agency's Cluster mission — an investigation into the Earth's magnetic field using a constellation of four spacecraft — to map out the ["eerie song"]() that the Earth sings when bombarded by electrically charged particles from the Sun. The research could allow us to understand disturbances in space weather and how they affect technology both on the ground and in space. It could also teach us about the magnetic fields of distant exoplanets and how they're affected by their parent star. ## Coronal Mass Ejection Solar winds occur when particles are released by the Sun and flow into other parts of the Solar System. A solar storm, or coronal mass ejection, occurs when the Sun shoots out a burst of plasma, caused by a release of magnetic energy. Such a storm is so powerful that it can [temporarily change the shape]() of the Earth's magnetic field. The team studied the foreshocks — the regions the solar storm's particles hit first when approaching Earth — and discovered the magnetic waves that were released as a result were far more complex than they initially thought. "We always expected a change in frequency but not the level of complexity in the wave," team lead Lucile Turc from the University of Helsinki, Finland said in [a statement](). https://youtu.be/WEk0slZJ-IA The scientists then turned these magnetic waves into audible sounds, resulting in alien-sounding bleeps and bloops. https://youtu.be/xaHokCJx9wg **READ MORE:** [Earth’s magnetic song recorded for the first time during a solar storm]() \[ESA\] **More on solar winds:** *[We May Have Finally Solved the Mystery of Solar Flares]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()