Solar storms, the sun’s frequent eruptions of charged particles known as gobs of plasma, can seriously disrupt GPS, satellites, and the internet on Earth. The sun has a temper, and these storms frequently let it out.
Could a tsunami actually be brought on by these flaming outbursts with all the destruction they could potentially cause?
The quickest response is indirect. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA), an earthquake beneath the ocean’s surface must cause water to be displaced and create a massive, extremely fast wave that travels through the entire water column in order for a tsunami to strike Earth (NOAA). Similar to how volcanoes erupt and cities tremble, these earthquakes are the result of tectonic plate movement. However terrifying it may seem for Earth to be bombarded by plasmatic winds from a solar flare or coronal mass ejection (an enormous cloud of electrically charged particles from the sun moving rapidly), those forces cannot directly cause a tsunami to rise up from the bottom of the ocean.
In spite of this, some researchers contend that solar storms could potentially trigger tsunamis on Earth.
Scientists concur that solar storms can produce shock waves similar to tsunamis, or “solar tsunamis,” which cause havoc on the sun rather than the Earth, as NASA reported when the phenomenon was observed by its Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) in 2006. This shock wave, also referred to as a Moreton wave, was strong enough to compress and heat up hydrogen and other gases in the sun, causing the star as a whole to burn brighter. This took place quickly.
In a 2022 study published in the journal Nature (opens in a new tab), a group of scientists discovered evidence of fallout from a solar outburst that struck Greenland more than 9,000 years ago. These findings were made possible by the discovery of extreme solar outbursts that can leave their mark on Earth. In ice cores that were later examined in a laboratory, solar wind-borne particles were trapped. This specific major event did not result in a tsunami, but a 2020 study in Scientific Reports(opens in new tab) discussed a potential connection between solar storms and large earthquakes, which are known to result in tsunamis.
In a study led by Vito Marchitelli, a satellite analysis specialist at the University of Basilicata in Potenzo, Italy, the team found evidence for a strong correlation between large earthquakes around the world and the proton density close to the magnetosphere, which is caused by the solar wind. The seismological community must take note of this finding because it could have long-term effects on earthquake prediction.
Solar flares or coronal mass ejections, which typically happen when magnetic fields on the sun tangle or break, are what cause solar storms that have an impact on Earth. Intense solar winds are launched into space by both explosions, which release enormous amounts of energy. According to NASA, satellite and GPS signals may become erratic when charged particles from solar winds interact with the ionosphere(opens in new tab), which is the outermost portion of our atmosphere (opens in new tab). A collision with the magnetosphere, however, might result in additional effects. More radially out than the ionosphere is the magnetosphere of Earth(opens in a new tab). The solar wind blowing into the magnetic fields around the planet shapes this region of space, where magnetic fields have particularly strong effects.
According to Marchitelli and his coworkers, particles from the solar wind that strike the magnetosphere may have an effect on the magnitude of earthquakes. Because these particles’ electricity could exacerbate an already-existing disturbance like subduction, in which one tectonic plate is pushed beneath another, the researchers think they may be related to tectonic plate movement. According to their logic, the more protons there were in the solar wind that jolted the magnetosphere, the more likely it was that they would exacerbate earthquakes, some of which might cause tsunamis.
This theory is still very much just that—a theory—because Marchitelli’s study didn’t look at how many tsunamis occurred during times of high and low solar wind.
This way of thinking is supported more. According to a 2011 study that was published in the journal Scientific Research(opens in a new tab), earthquakes were more frequent during the solar maximum, the period of the sun’s 11-year cycle when it is most active and most likely to produce solar wind bursts that can change the magnetic field’s shape on Earth. Because of this, the Earth’s magnetic field could be pushed up against the tectonic plates below, putting more pressure on the crust and possibly causing earthquakes that can cause tsunamis.
These results continue to generate debate as of right now. In a 2012 article that was published in Scientific Research (opens in a new tab), geophysicists rebutted the claim that there is a connection between earthquakes and solar storms.
In their study, they said that the link between solar activity and earthquakes “proves to be an elusive phenomenon.”
Therefore, solar storms, which are much more terrifying close to the sun than they are far away from it, do not directly cause tsunamis on Earth. In spite of solar wind activity, normal tectonic activity continues. It is still unknown, however, whether the solar wind particles can actually affect plate tectonics in any way.
