Solar storm power outages unlikely in Idaho Falls
IDAHO FALLS (KIFI) - The City of Idaho Falls says there is a small but unlikely chance of power outages from Friday night’s massive solar storm.
Instead of rain or snow, the Earth will be hit with the largest burst of electromagnetism since 2005. The storm is expected to last throughout the weekend. While the term “solar storm” sounds scary, officials said it shouldn’t spark any panic.
Solar storms happen all the time, according to the NOAA. That’s why City of Idaho Falls (and Idaho Falls Power) spokesperson Eric Grossarth isn’t fazed.
“Talking with our staff, it’s not something that’s been a real major concern in the past,” he said.
Minor solar systems get absorbed by the Earth’s magnetic field, but larger ones can push through.
"It’d send a high amount of energy, higher than what a power line or a piece of equipment on that power line is designed to handle,” Grossarth explained. “That’s one of those things that you can only prepare for so much.”
Local News 8 asked if any other hazards create a similar effect on the power grid.
“A good example would be in your house, if you had lightning strike your house and a large amount of energy going through those lines,” Grossarth said. “It can trip breakers and things like that.”
Friday night’s solar storm prompted the U.S. government to issue its first severe geomagnetic storm watch in nearly 20 years. On a scale of G1 to G5, G5 being most severe, the storm has been categorized as a G4.
However, Grossarth said a G4 solar storm still isn’t much cause for concern.
“I’ll be honest - I think a bigger threat to power would be squirrels,” he said candidly.
The storm is much more likely to affect radio and GPS signals, Grossarth added. Even if it overloads the grid, he said the city is ready for it.
“It’s just repairing equipment,” Grossarth said. “So if it blows a transformer, pops a switch, it’s just going and replacing or fixing that equipment. It’s just like any other outage.”
Solar storms do have upsides, though. Areas in Idaho without much light pollution should be able to view the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights, this weekend.
