Forecast

NASA's sensational James Webb Telescope, which aims to look back to the early days of the universe, is on course. But it is also exposed to so-called space weather. Because giant currents of plasma and magnetic fields are raging through our planetary system. Slow and fast solar winds can collide and cause traffic jams like on a motorway. Additionally, magnetic clouds are ejected from the uppermost layer of the Sun’s atmosphere, the corona. “We can even experience the effects on Earth”, explains Manuela Temmer. “For example in the form of northern lights, changes in satellite orbits, GPS failures along with disrupted air traffic and cell phone reception.”