NASA image

As reported by Bloomberg and the Daily Mail, extra bursts of radiation from the Sun will hit the Earth this weekend. This kind of event is formally known as a geomagnetic storm. The popular press hints at the possibility of disruptions to GPS and bird migration but as is shown at the end of the Daily Mail article, the storm is predicted to be a ‘G2’ on a scale with a maximum of ‘G5’. Also, G2 storms only affect birds in high latitudes, have a weak effect on the electric power grid, and generally minimal impact on satellites.

There is a magnetic field around the Earth (called the magnetosphere) that shields the Earth from the vast majority of the Sun’s harmful radiation (see the image above). That is why Earth does not look like the surface of Mars.

We may experience a catastrophic storm at some point, one that can significantly penetrate the magnetosphere, but the one this weekend is unlikely to be it.