On some channels, as early as the pre-New Year week, reports appeared claiming that magnetic storms would fray the nerves of weather-sensitive people starting right from December 31, 2023. However, astronomers disagree with this: the magnetic storm forecast for January looks downright cloudless.
All the way up to January 22, the geomagnetic background remains not merely steady but practically calm — disturbances will reach a maximum of three points, which is considered an absolutely quiet situation. And only on January 23 and 24 will disturbances reach four points, which doesn't even amount to a weak G1-class magnetic storm.
That said, experts at the Laboratory of Solar Astronomy of the Space Research Institute and the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics note that it's impossible to give an accurate long-term forecast for magnetic storms, just as with ordinary weather. Solar activity continues to grow, flares are occurring more and more often, which means there will be more spontaneous plasma ejections. Some of them will inevitably be directed toward Earth and trigger magnetic storms.
On the bright side: these same flares are the cause of the most beautiful northern lights, which lately could be seen even at southern latitudes. On the downside — sudden fluctuations in the planet's geomagnetic background can cause weather-sensitive people to feel worse.
