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Solar storm causes major GPS errors across the United States
A study published in Geophysical Research Letters reveals that a powerful solar storm in November caused significant GPS positioning errors across the continental United States. Researchers found that global navigation satellite systems experienced inaccuracies exceeding 33 feet (10 meters), a disruption that lasted for several hours.
The storm, which reached a G4 'severe' level, caused the Aurora Oval to expand toward the equator. This created intense density gradients in the upper atmosphere, leading to signal fluctuations that affected mid-latitude regions. The disruption was severe enough to potentially impact autonomous transportation and precision agriculture industries.
Beyond ground-level navigation, the solar activity forced NASA to delay a Mars-bound spacecraft launch. While the November event occurred after the peak agricultural season, scientists noted that a similar storm in May 2024 caused an estimated $500 million in losses for farmers due to GPS inaccuracies during critical planting windows.
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- [● 2 SOURCES] The solar storm caused the Aurora Oval to expand south toward the equator, creating density gradients in the upper atmosphere. www.ithome.com · futurism.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] The positioning errors were large enough to disrupt precision agriculture and autonomous transportation industries in the continental United States. geekspin.co · www.ithome.com · futurism.com
- [● 3 SOURCES] A study published in Geophysical Research Letters found that global navigation satellite systems experienced significant positioning errors during a solar storm. geekspin.co · www.ithome.com · futurism.com
- [○ 1 SOURCE] A previous solar storm in May 2024 caused an estimated $500 million in losses for farmers. www.ithome.com
- [● 2 SOURCES] The solar storm in November caused NASA to delay the launch of a Mars-bound spacecraft. www.ithome.com · futurism.com
- [○ 1 SOURCE] The geomagnetic storm around November 12 reached a G4 'severe' level. technews.tw
- [● 3 SOURCES] GPS positioning errors exceeded 33 feet (10 meters) during the November solar storm. geekspin.co · www.ithome.com · futurism.com