‘NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC)- a division of the National Weather Service – is monitoring the sun following a series of solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that began on May 8,’ the emergency alert read. ‘Space weather forecasters have issued a Severe (G4) Geomagnetic Storm Watch for the evening of Friday. 

‘Additional solar eruptions could cause geomagnetic storm conditions to persist through the weekend,’ it went on, before describing the abnormal activity that tipped space specialists off.

‘A large sunspot cluster has produced several moderate to strong solar flares since Wednesday at 5:00 am ET,’ it read.

‘At least five flares were associated with CMEs that appear to be Earth-directed. SWPC forecasters will monitor NOAA and NASA’s space assets for the onset of a geomagnetic storm.’

The agency went on to define CMEs – explosions of plasma and magnetic fields from the sun’s corona. 

They cause geomagnetic storms when they are directed at Earth, they warned – with this being the case as of early Friday.

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