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Powerful Solar Storm Happening Around The World; "Reasonable To Assess" Israel Used U.S. Arms In Gaza Against International Law; Israeli Security Cabinet Approves Expanding Rafah Operation; Russia Launches Cross-Border Offensive In Kharkiv Region; Trump Hush Money Trial; Biden Administration Closely Monitoring Geomagnetic Storm For Potential Impacts To Comms, GPS; Stunning Aurora Seen Across The Globe. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired May 11, 2024 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade in Atlanta. Welcome to this special edition of CNN NEWSROOM.
We'll begin with the powerful geomagnetic storm happening right now. The solar storm is classified as extreme level 5 out of five. It hasn't got to this level in more than 20 years and it is causing the northern and southern lights to dazzle in many places that rarely, if ever see them.
We'll take a look at the sky above parts of Florida a short time ago, quite a remarkable sight for the balmy state north of the tropics. Most of the Midwest and even the northern California region have had a high chance of seeing the aurora.
And the skies over the U.K. also lit up in vivid colors earlier Friday night. Parts of Europe and Asia are likely to have another chance to view the lights on Saturday. In the Southern Hemisphere, aurora australis was spotted over New Zealand as well as Argentina.
Of course, it all started when the sun erupted with a series of solar flares and what's known as coronal mass ejections, launching particles directly at the Earth. When those particles reach the Earth's magnetic field and atmospheric, it creates this spectacular light shows that we're witnessing.
Well, the lights are expected to reach their peak activity this hour and into the morning until sunrise. The storm will likely continue throughout the weekend.
Well, the Biden administration is closely tracking the storm as it could disrupt communications, satellites and power stations. Electrical utilities are making preparations just in case. Canada is no stranger to the stunning views from geomagnetic storms.
But this one is intense. CNN's Paula Newton is just outside the capital of Ottawa.
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PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: As you might have guessed, the northern lights are more of a common occurrence in Canada. And the storms, the solar storms do not even have to be as severe as the one we are seeing now.
The issue though is here normally the kinds of colors that you're seeing in the sky are greenish or a milky green kind of color. Some people report seeing some blue.
This time with these spectacular colors, many people across Canada, who do not have cloud cover, will be looking toward the sky and continue to look to the sky because of those spectacular colors that we are not used to seeing.
The other thing people are keeping an eye on is whether or not there will be any disruptions through anything technical, whether it's the electrical grid or anything else. In 1989 in the province of Quebec, there was quite a widespread power outage that scientists still study today.
But back then, they did not have the satellite technology that they have now. They have reinforced those infrastructure grids. But also they have more sensors, more satellite technology. They know a little bit more about what is going to be happening with these solar storms and have a bit more of a prediction in terms of what will happen.
So far, no disruptions throughout Canada, except people will be disrupted their sleep as they continue to look skyward, looking for those spectacular colors -- Paula Newton, CNN, Dunrobin, Ontario.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: I'm joined now by storm chaser Logan Parham. He was lucky enough to capture this historic phenomenon in the comfort of his own back yard in Hastings, Florida.
Good to have you with us.
LOGAN PARHAM, STORM CHASER: It's a pleasure.
KINKADE: So just describe what you saw, what you've caught on camera.
PARHAM: Well, I headed out there because I knew it was going to happen tonight and there was at least somewhat of a chance. And went out there, snapped a photo and realized that it was only going to get more intense.
And it just blew my mind completely and totally because, this far south and Florida, that's not something that, you know, we usually see ever, definitely probably once in a lifetime event. So on it was absolutely gorgeous.
KINKADE: I mean, the colors are really bright, pink and purple.
What were you filming on?
PARHAM: It's believe it or not, that was just my iPhone right there.
Yes. I might turn it down to open the exposure, give it -- give it longer time to let that light into the lens. And it really draws out the colors. But I will say, it being so dark out here.
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Out in the country, you can actually see a lot of that pink and purple with your naked eye.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly. Not around any sort of high-rises that might impact what you're saying. And, of course, you typically chase hurricanes and tornadoes.
Have you ever chased the aurora before?
PARHAM: No, I've never really considered it or given any thought. But I definitely would now and I just happened to be lucky enough to have one here.
And it is the first time for me and it was definitely a unique experience that I would love to do again, for sure.
KINKADE: And of course, like, how does this compare, these sort of images that you took, to what you've captured in the past, where you're chasing these quite dramatic storms?
PARHAM: Well, I will, say, it was a lot more calm than what I'm used to.
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PARHAM: So that was it was a good switchup, no doubt.
But it was just beautiful. And again, like you said, I've seen some very violent weather, some truly impressive things out there. But this was just totally mind-blowing, totally unexpected.
And it's up there on my list for sure.
KINKADE: Logan, is this you're like storm chasing your day job?
Is this or this is the hobby?
Just describe your background for us.
PARHAM: So right now it's, it's kind of a hobby.
I'm working on getting it to the point where it could be my job. I'm actually in school right now, working toward my meteorology degree. So to kind of build that foundation and whatnot. But that's the ultimate goal. So I've been doing it for quite a few years now.
KINKADE: And so what do you know about this geomagnetic storm cell and just how unusual it is?
Obviously, you wouldn't have seen one probably in the last time. It's at least 20 years since the last major solo storm.
What do you know about this?
PARHAM: So I'm going to be completely honest with you. I don't know much. I just -- I heard some from a few other friends of mine who are talking about it and I was like, you know what, I guess if there's a chance, let's go see it. Of course, I specialize in atmospheric weapon --
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PARHAM: -- so it was, it was a difference, a big difference.
KINKADE: Yes. It's I mean, this shots you got were just amazing.
How long ago did you come inside and I assume you'll probably go back out again tomorrow night.
PARHAM: Thank you, yes. And, now that I've researched a little bit more about it, I'm definitely going to keep my eye out.
I've already popped out there are a few more times. I haven't seen anything yet. We've been a little bit too cloud covered from some storms that went through here a little bit earlier.
But I'm keeping my eye out for sure. And it's definitely a beautiful experience.
KINKADE: And so if any of your friends or anyone still awake right now in Florida, can they see it if they go outside?
PARHAM: I believe that certain areas may be able to. It's really dependent on cloud cover.
And of course, a lot of people get caught up on the cloud cover but they forget to remember light pollution. So if you live near a big city or turn off your porch lights, look up, get that view away from those city lights if you can help it.
And that's going to maximize your chance of seeing that.
KINKADE: Got some great shots, there Logan Parham, thanks for staying up in the early hours of the morning with us. much appreciated.
PARHAM: Absolutely. Thank you, guys, so much.
KINKADE: We will continue to keep an eye on this. But after the break, I'm going to take you to Manhattan and have a look at how prosecutors are setting the stage for Donald Trump's fixer to testify in the hush money trial. (MUSIC PLAYING)
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KINKADE: Welcome back, I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Israel's security cabinet has approved an expansion of the area of operation in Rafah. More than 1 million displaced Palestinian civilians have taken refuge there in addition to the population who lived there before the conflict.
A new White House report says it is, quote, "reasonable to assess" that Israeli forces have used U.S. weapons in Gaza in ways inconsistent with international humanitarian law. The report stopped short of saying that Israel violated international law.
But it is sharply critical of the toll in Gaza.
Part of the report says, While Israel has the knowledge, experience and tools to implement best practices for mitigating civilian harm in its military operations, the results on the ground, including high levels of civilian casualties, raise substantial questions as to whether the IDF is using them effectively in all cases."
U.S. law prevents Washington from providing weapons to security forces credibly accused of gross human rights violations.
Well, CNN's Jeremy Diamond is in Jerusalem with the latest on Israel's operations in Gaza.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the rift between the United States and Israel over a potential major Israeli ground offensive into Rafah is showing no signs of narrowing, one day after President Biden threatened to withhold additional U.S. weapons shipments to Israel if it proceeds with an all-out ground offensive into Rafah.
The Israeli security cabinet greenlighting a quote-unquote "expansion" of the area of operation in Rafah. That's according to one Israeli official who I spoke with.
Now this decision by the security cabinet effectively empowers the Israeli war cabinet, that smaller group that has been making the major decisions about the conduct of the war in Gaza. It empowers the war cabinet to expand military operations in Rafah, to make decisions about that military expansion.
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This is not an indication of an imminent expansion of Israeli military activity in Rafah although it is clear that Israel does intend to do so.
The question at this point is when and how big will that expansion be?
President Biden made clear that he's talking about on all-out offensive, one that would impact the major population centers in Rafah, the most densely populated areas, where some 1.4 million Palestinians are currently sheltering, many of them displaced from other parts of Gaza sometimes once, twice, three times, even.
Now, what we're already witnessing on the ground though, is significant. The Israeli military is calling it a limited military operation in eastern Rafah that has resulted in the closure of the Rafah border crossing, which is in that area of eastern Rafah.
But even that limited military operation is already resulting in major impacts on the ground. UNRWA estimates that some 110,000 Palestinians have been displaced from Rafah, forced to flee north.
And what they're finding when they do go north, are conditions that humanitarian aid official say simply aren't adequate for the number of people who are flooding into that humanitarian zone, as the Israeli military is calling it.
This is the al-Mawasi area. It is sandy. It is a coastal area and there simply is not running water in many parts of this area. There's no sewage, electricity and people are really being forced to live in tents and makeshift shelters on the sides of the road.
Now we know that this situation is already bad. But there's warnings now from the United Nations that the situation could get that much worse.
The United Nations secretary general, Antonio Guterres, warning that this will be a, quote-unquote, "epic humanitarian disaster" if the Israeli military proceeds with that all-out military offensive in Rafah -- Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
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KINKADE: The United Nations General Assembly has overwhelmingly approved a measure calling on the Security Council to reconsider Palestinian membership. The vote was 143-9 with 25 countries abstaining.
The measure also grants the Palestinian Authority new rights and privileges at the U.N. They won't have a vote but they will be able to submit and introduce proposals and amendments.
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RIYAD MANSOUR, PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: Our flag flies high and proud in Palestine and across the globe and on the campus of Columbia University. It has become a symbol, raised by all those who believe in freedom and unjust rule, by all those who can no longer stand idly by in the face of such utter injustice.
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KINKADE: Before the vote, the U.S. vowed to again, veto any bids that Palestinian statehood that is brought to the Security Council.
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KINKADE: Ukraine's president says Russian advances have been stopped for now after Moscow launched a new ground offensive in the Kharkiv region. That's in northern Ukraine as opposed to the east and the south, where most of the recent fighting has been happening.
Ukrainian sources say Russian troops swept across the border Friday, advancing up to five kilometers in one area. Residents of some border villages were later evacuated. At least two civilians were reportedly killed.
Ukraine says its second largest city, Kharkiv, is not in danger of falling. President Zelenskyy says, fierce battles are underway and the situation is serious.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The main focus is the Kharkiv region. Russian forces today attempted to expand operations against Ukraine. We understand the extent of the occupiers' forces, see their intentions. Our soldiers, our artillery, our drones respond to the occupier.
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KINKADE: Well, most of the military aid to the U.S. has been given to Ukraine recently, is now headed to Kharkiv and that is according to U.S. Defense Secretary who spoke about it on Friday.
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GEN. LLOYD AUSTIN, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: May have to be redistributed to the point of need. And that point of need is going to be determined by the Ukrainians.
If they believe that their most urgent need is in Kharkiv area, then certainly that's where their, you know, they're going to begin to put most of -- most of the resources that we're providing.
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KINKADE: Austin spoke hours after the U.S. approved $400 million in new aid for Ukraine. The package includes ammunition, the Patriot air defense systems, which Ukraine desperately needs amid a constant barrage of Russian missiles and drone strikes.
Jill Dougherty is a former CNN Moscow bureau chief and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University.
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She joins us from Washington, D.C.
Good to have you with us, Jill.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you, Lynda.
KINKADE: So this war has long been waged in the east and south. Now Russia has opened a new front in the northeast. Ukraine's president calls it a new wave of counteroffensive.
How would you describe this development?
DOUGHERTY: Well, it's significant.
It appears that it's not really that clear exactly what the final objective here is. But it is significant because it does pull, as you were pointing out, it could pull Ukrainian troops from the east where they'd been fighting and trying to hold on as the Russians move in, and then pull them up to the north-northeast where Kharkiv is.
And so it does -- it is a shift and it comes, as I'm sure we will discuss, in the midst of this delay in getting aid from the United States.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly. I want to get to aid in just a moment but I just want to ask you what this could mean for the city of Kharkiv, which is home to about 1.3 million people. It's Ukraine's second largest city, because Ukrainian forces -- or officials rather -- have repeatedly said that they don't believe Russia has the capacity to take that entire city.
Do you agree?
And if not, what is Russia's strategy here?
DOUGHERTY: Well, it appears that, with the number of troops that they have, the Russians, it would be difficult if not impossible to take the city. That doesn't mean that they couldn't begin to eat away at the process and then bring in more troops if they were successful.
But you know, there's another side to this, which is really the psychological side of it. If you have Donbas and then you have another part of Ukraine, this aerial bombing of energy sources for the Ukrainians is very, very disturbing.
And if you begin to bomb or attack a city like Kharkiv, it's psychologically very, very difficult for people to put up with this.
I think that might be part of it, part of their rationale.
KINKADE: Yes, that makes sense.
Of course, you mentioned the aid. The U.S. today has announced this new $400 million military aid package to Ukraine. We know that Ukraine says it will deploy it to Kharkiv as it sees fit.
This is the third aid package in as many weeks but this comes after months and months of delays.
How has those delays impacted Ukraine's ability to defend itself?
And what will this latest aid package mean?
DOUGHERTY: It's been a really significant problem.
I mean, essentially the U.S. Congress was waiting around and not passing this for half a year, six months. And so what's happened is -- let's talk about the Donbas area in the east. It's been very difficult for the Ukrainians to hold on. They simply don't have the equipment and certainly ammunition is a huge problem.
The Russians, as we know, are getting ammunition from the North Koreans. They're getting drones from Iran. And so without that, the Ukrainians have really suffered.
Now that they're getting it, they need it as quickly as possible.
KINKADE: Yes.
DOUGHERTY: But I think that has really set them back.
KINKADE: And we know Ukrainian commanders have said that they have been expecting a summer offensive.
But according to a Ukrainian military source, who spoke to CNN, they said this particular assault was unexpected.
What does that mean for Ukraine's preparedness?
DOUGHERTY: Well, you're right.
They did think something was going to happen. And Ukrainian intelligence knew or predicted that something like this would happen. Exactly where, I'm not quite sure what they thought or where it would come.
And that's why it's a little unclear about the entire, let's say, ultimate aim of this. I think you could define two.
One would be exploiting this window of opportunity before the weapons from the United States get into the field. The Russians push as far as they can and do as much damage.
But it's also, as I mentioned, is to pull away Ukrainian forces from Donbas and bring them up to Kharkiv. And that weakens, of course, the protection on the east.
KINKADE: Yes, you make really good points. Jill Dougherty, as always, good to get your perspective and analysis. Thanks so much.
DOUGHERTY: Sure.
KINKADE: Just in to CNN, the Israeli military is ordering the immediate evacuation of several more neighborhoods in eastern Rafah. The IDF posted on social media that evacuees should immediately head to the expanded humanitarian area in al-Mawasi.
More than 100,000 Palestinians have already fled Rafah and we will bring you more details on this as we get them.
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KINKADE: Prosecutors in Donald Trump's hush money trial are closing in on wrapping up their case but not before some bombshell testimony to kick off their final week. CNN's Kara Scannell has the latest from New York.
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KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Prosecutors' star witness Michael Cohen is expected to testify on Monday in former President Donald Trump's hush money trial.
Cohen, Trump's former attorney and fixer, is at the crux of the criminal case against him. Prosecutors say Cohen paid off adult film star Stormy Daniels on Trump's behalf to kill her story of an alleged affair before the 2016 election. Trump denies the affair.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Somebody paid the lawyer and then paid the lawyer so it was a legal expense that somebody happened to be me. I didn't do the bookkeeping. I didn't even know about it. This is what the case is about.
SCANNELL (voice-over): Cohen told his Political Beatdown Podcast co- host on Thursday that he looks forward to testify.
MICHAEL COHEN, DONALD TRUMP'S FORMER ATTORNEY: The sooner this thing starts, the sooner this thing finishes.
SCANNELL (voice-over): After a defense request, Judge Juan Merchan told prosecutors he wants Cohen to keep quiet about the case before he takes the stand. But he can't issue a gag order on a witness, something Trump expressed frustration about as he left court.
TRUMP: There is no gag to Michael Cohen. What the judge did was amazing actually, was amazing. Everybody can say whatever they want. They can say whatever they want but I'm not allowed to say anything about anybody. It's a disgrace.
SCANNELL (voice-over): Prosecutors called witnesses to the stand to help lay the groundwork for Cohen's upcoming testimony. An AT&T analyst introduced Cohen's phone records.
And back on the stand, Trump's former White House aide Madeleine Westerhout testified about Trump's reaction to the release of Daniels' story in 2018.
Westerhout testified Trump was upset by it and her understanding was that it would be hurtful to his family. She later clarified Trump did not specifically speak about his family in that conversation. Trump's lawyer suggested he made the $130,000 hush money pay off to Daniels in order to protect his family. Meanwhile, prosecutors argue he did it to influence the 2016 election which was two weeks away and came on the heels of the Access Hollywood tape damaging his campaign.
TRUMP: And when you're a star they let you do it, you can do anything.
SCANNELL (voice-over): Trump's lawyer Susan Necheles asked Westerhout about the process of Trump's signing checks. Westinghouse said Trump would sign them while multitasking, doing things like talking on the phone or meeting with people. She described FedExing the signed checks back to the Trump Organization.
Prosecutors used Westerhout to show the chain of command of checks like the one sent to Cohen to reimburse him for the hush money. Cohen testified before Congress about the allegations in 2019.
ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D-MD), FORMER U.S. HOUSE REPRESENTATIVE: Donald Trump wrote you a check out of his personal account while he was serving as President of the United States of America to reimburse you for hush money payments.
COHEN: Yes, Mr. Chairman.
SCANNELL (voice-over): Another witness, a paralegal at the district attorney's office, read one of Trump's tweets about the monthly payments to Cohen, which Trump called a retainer. Trump said, Mr. Cohen, an attorney, received a monthly retainer not from the campaign and having nothing to do with the campaign.
The tweet came around the time his former lawyer Rudy Giuliani told FOX News host Sean Hannity that Trump reimbursed Cohen for the hush money, that Cohen paid for it out of his own pocket.
RUDY GIULIANI, DONALD TRUMP'S FORMER ATTORNEY: Having something to do with paying some Stormy Daniels woman $130,000, I mean, which is going to turn out to be perfectly legal. That money was not campaign money. They funneled it through the law firm, funneled through a law firm and the president repaid it.
SCANNELL: Now this capped a week where the jury saw the documents that prosecutors say were falsified, in this case, the invoices, the general ledger entries and the checks. They also heard from the woman, Stormy Daniels, that's at the center of the hush money payment.
Next week, it will be Michael Cohen squaring off against the man he said he would once take a bullet for. Prosecutors say they could rest their case by the end of the week -- Kara Scannell, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron, is no longer going to be a delegate at the Republican National Convention this summer. The office says former first lady Melania Trump says Barron was honored but he, quote, "regretfully declines due to prior commitments." Barron had been selected by Florida Republicans to serve as an at-
large delegate at the July convention. Other Trump children were asked to be delegates as well.
Well, still to come, we're following a massive solar storm that's creating stunning views around the world but also has the potential to knock out power grids and satellites.
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KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Well, the stunning aurora is happening now in the Western Hemisphere, are expected to reach their peak this hour and into the morning. It's, of course, the result of that powerful geomagnetic storm. It's really the strongest of its kind in more than 20 years.
And it's led to scenes like this in the U.S. state of Georgia. Governments and electrical companies are monitoring the situation for potential disruptions. The storm could potentially impact communications, satellites and power grids. The light phenomenon was caused by a series of solar eruptions that held particles directly at the Earth.
[03:35:00]
CNN's Chad Myers has more on the historic solar storm.
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CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. So everybody wants to know whether it's going to be visible where I am, right?
It will be visible across most of North America, maybe not all the way down to the Gulf Coast but it'll be close. And it's not a one day event. So even if you have cloud cover tonight, you will still be able to see it tomorrow because there's more than one coronal mass ejection on the way. So what is it?
Well, it's just a ball of plasma that's being shot at the Earth.
These things happen all the time. But rarely do we have them that go straight at the Earth. Think about how big three dimension today. It could go that way, it could go to the back, it could go to the -- it depends on where the sunspot is.
Well, we know this is coming toward the Earth because of what we call the halo effect. When you see the cloud mass kind of come out of this, this is the sun right here. This is the sun being blocked by a disk. But when you see the coronal mass ejections come this way. It's like looking at somebody blowing smoke ring at you, you know what's coming. And you know what's on its way, that's the same idea, same kind of smoke ring that we're seeing.
So yes, we have more than one still coming. So overnight, a big one, still landing on the Earth's atmosphere and we are still seeing that really bright colorful cloud all the way around the globe.
Typically, the only place you're not seeing it is where it's sunny, where the sun has already come up and you can't see it. But it was very, very spectacular. Somewhere around I would say maybe one Z, one Zulu time, Greenwich Mean Time, somewhere around 9 o'clock, not quite 9 o'clock on the East Coast of the U.S.
But it was still light. We couldn't see it in North America.
But another one and then another one and another one, this is still going to be going for quite some time. This is what the solar wind looks like. And I want you to think of it like a, you know the seismograph in -- when you look in California and you see the Earth shake?
Well, the sun wasn't shaking at all. The solar wind was doing just fine, being nice and flat.
But then all of a sudden, around 2:30 or 2:40 this afternoon, the Earth began to shake literally. And so did the solar wind. And it came in very, very quickly. Get this number around your brain, 1.6 million miles per hour. That's how fast this solar wind is coming.
Auroras seen farther south with a G5, big number. This is 5 out of 5. This is as big as we get. There are still levels of 5 but G5, we're already up there. Power outages are likely. And also satellite disruptions are also likely.
So yes, it's certainly possible. So rare, the red coronas and then the most common are the green. This is what we see all the time across parts of Canada. But the less common are the purples. And the reds, we are seeing a lot of them tonight.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, I want to join -- want to welcome, Dr. Ed Bloomer, who joins us from London. He's an astronomer at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich.
Good to have you with us.
ED BLOOMER, ASTRONOMER, ROYAL OBSERVATORY GREENWICH: Thanks very much for having me.
KINKADE: So this is a once in a two decade event. There is dual magnetic solar storm. Just explain for us exactly what is happening.
BLOOMER: So the sun is constantly doing something. It's a giant nuclear furnace and it's and it's very active and it's producing a solar wind of charged particles. And they interact with the Earth's magnetic -- the magnetosphere.
They're guided along the magnetic field lines. And so charging up particles up in the upper atmosphere, we see aurora.
However, what's happening in the moment is that we're getting something that is very, very active. We're seeing coronal mass ejections, sourcing a flood of charged particles that are hitting the magnetosphere and that means that we're getting a lot of auroral activity. And we're seeing it much further south that we would usually see it.
KINKADE: These solar storms are cyclical. They happen or they could happen every 11 years. But this is a G5 storm.
What does that level mean?
It's the highest.
What does that rating mean?
BLOOMER: Well, it is an attempt to sort of quantify what the impact is. When you have something like a G5, then there's enough going on, there's enough activity that you -- and enough disruption to that magnetosphere that you can get things like radio outages.
And it also suggests that there's going to be enough of an issue that you might have to put things like satellites into safe modes, that it can induce charges in electronic equipment. And therefore, if electronics aren't hardened against this sort of thing, that you might have to deactivate it for a while.
So it's really a measure of the potential disruption that this space weather can cause.
KINKADE: I was wondering what impact there could be on the International Space Station because I was I was looking at NASA's feed and ISS feed earlier.
[03:40:00]
Trying to see if they had posted or published any images of the view from there. Yet to see anything.
What sort of impact going to be having up there?
BLOOMER: Well, I mean, one positive thing might be that they might get some pretty nice view. I mean, they're looking down on the Earth. And so the International Space Station quite often publishes really beautiful pictures of aurora.
Again, things like disruption to telecoms; it could cause not just the ISS but various spots around the world to have a bit of a signal blackout. But this is not a dangerous thing for them.
KINKADE: And, of course, the sun has these solar flares, these powerful eruptions from the sun's surface.
At what speed are they heading toward Earth right now?
BLOOMER: Oh, hundreds of kilometers a second. This is fast stuff. And highly energetic stuff. Again, a shorter window really is -- it's like when you're on Earth (ph), it ebbs and flows.
But yes, the moment, it's fast and hundreds of kilometers per second.
KINKADE: And I understood you went out last night or the early hours of this morning.
What did you see?
BLOOMER: Well, so I think that's a kind of interesting thing.
I'm in the middle of London. I'm in quite a light polluted area. And I could still see some of the aurora, seen quite nice reds, a little bit of green but mainly reds and pinks. But I was able to just snap with a pretty alt 4 (ph).
And I've got to say some fairly all key (ph) pictures but that's -- I wasn't anywhere particularly dark. I wasn't at particularly high latitude or anything. So even in the middle of a huge city like London, we've being able to see a couple of things last night.
KINKADE: Yes. I mean, we're just looking at some those images that you took and these are pretty special, especially given that, as you say, you're in London.
I was wondering whether, when you talk about the impact on power outages but also like GPS tracking, whether this could impact flights at all.
BLOOMER: Well, yes.
I mean, I think -- I think it's probably important to stress, it kind of connected everything these days and so disruptions to networks are very important. We've got lots of things that are relying on information flying around all the time, very interconnected world in that sense.
However, we are not unaware of this and so we do build in, nowadays, try and build in that kind of resistance to the network. So you might see a little bit of disruption but, hopefully, most services should be going ahead.
KINKADE: Excellent, good to hear, Ed Bloomer, good to have you on the program. Thanks so much for joining us.
BLOOMER: Thank you very much. Thank you.
KINKADE: We're going to take a quick break.
Then after the break, we'll have much more on this enormous solar storm as it lights up the night sky in an historic space event. Also, ahead, Prince William gives a rare health date -- health update
on his wife, Catherine, the Princess of Wales. Have all that and much more when we return.
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KINKADE: Welcome back, I'm Lynda Kinkade.
A powerful geomagnetic storm happening right now around the world. One this strong hasn't happened in more than 20 years and it's causing beautiful light shows in the sky across the globe.
Well, it all started when the sun erupted with a series of solar flares in what's known as coronal mass ejections. And when those particles reach the Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere, it creates the spectacular light shows that we're witnessing.
It's giving many places the chance to see aurora that rarely, if ever, get to witness them. The storm will likely continue through the weekend and could cause communication and power disruptions.
The White House says it's keeping a close eye on any possible impacts from this rare solar storm, including disruptions to communication and GPS systems. CNN's Brian Fung explains what could happen.
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BRIAN FUNG, CNN TECHNOLOGY REPORTER: The good news is if you're an average cellphone user, this solar activity may not affect your devices very much. The exact reasons for that are really interesting and it gives you a fascinating glimpse into how our everyday technology really works, not to mention the science behind the storm.
As you've been hearing all day, the sun has been sending radiation toward Earth that interacts with our magnetic sphere. That's what's causing these roars everywhere. And a byproduct of all that can be fluctuations in the upper atmosphere that scatter or even block radio transmissions in certain specific frequencies.
Now this shouldn't interfere with cellular signals, because those run on different frequencies than the ones we're talking about here, your calls and mobile data should still go through.
But what can these storms affect, while the list includes satellites in orbit, as well as any signal trying to reach them through the ionosphere, that's the upper layer of the atmosphere we were just talking about. So that could mean glitchy or less accurate GPS readings on ships or airplanes.
But again, cell phone GPS might be less affected because phones usually rely on cell towers in addition to satellites to get a location fix.
Now shortwave radios will likely have issues, that's because in order to increase their range, people typically try to bounce them off the underside of the ionosphere. With the storms, that obviously gets a lot harder.
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Lots of commercial businesses and government agencies use this type of communication and so do amateur ham radio operators, all of these users could be affected.
Now there is one way in which the storm could indirectly affect your electronic devices. And that's if the disruptions cause widespread power grid issues.
Utility companies say they're monitoring the situation and are prepared but storm watchers have upgraded this to the most intense level that exists in the U.S. government's classification system. And that could mean overloaded transformers and grid disruption.
If that happens, it could cut power to cell towers, data centers and other critical infrastructure. But then it just becomes more of a garden variety power outage problem, not really a direct issue stemming from the solar storm. And all of these providers have backup generators.
So any interruptions in cell service should be limited if it happens at all. The bigger problem for most of us in that scenario, it'll probably be how to keep our devices charged -- Brian Fung, CNN, Washington.
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KINKADE: Well, Prince William has given a rare health update on his wife, Catherine, the Princess of Wales. He says Kate is doing well, following her cancer diagnosis. William made the comments during his visit to a community hospital off the Cornish coast in southwest England on Friday when staff asked about her.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE)?
WILLIAM, PRINCE OF WALES: (INAUDIBLE).
KINKADE (voice-over): Well, the Princess of Wales revealed in March that she'd been diagnosed with cancer and was in the early stages of treatment.
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KINKADE: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are in Nigeria on a trip that includes a mental health summit as well as meetings with local charities. CNN's Stephanie Busari has more.
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STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN SENIOR AFRICA EDITOR (voice-over): Greeted with cheese and traditional music, Prince Harry and Meghan arrived in Abuja to begin a private three-day visit to Nigeria.
Their first engagement, the Lightway Academy, a group of schools in the country's capital, supported by the couple's Archwell Foundation.
PRINCE HARRY, DUKE OF SUSSEX: Hello, it is fantastic to be here in Nigeria with you all and to be here at the school for our first visit.
BUSARI (voice-over): At the school, Harry and Meghan spent time with students and staff, joining in with the singing but also launching a two-day summit run by the GEANCO Foundation on Mental Health in a bid to remove the stigma around it.
PRINCE HARRY: If you take anything away from today, just know that mental health affects every single person in the entire world.
BUSARI (voice-over): Something that resonated with students.
VALERIE OFFIA, LIGHTWAY ACADEMY STUDENT: They talked on mental health, which was really good. They were really inspiring.
BUSARI: And what did they say?
OFFIA: They said that -- Harry said things like, "It's OK to not be OK," and that's his foundation is there to inspire people. And that was really inspiring, especially coming from him.
BUSARI (voice-over): This is the couple's first visit to Nigeria. It's also their first time in Africa since 2019. Their last official visit as working royals included South Africa, Malawi, Angola and Botswana.
Over the next three days, the couple will undertake a busy schedule, where they'll be heavily promoting Harry's Invictus Games as well as engaging with the themes of mental health and female empowerment.
They also will embark on a series of visits to organizations dedicated to supporting veterans and military rehabilitation. As this is a private visit and not undertaken on behalf of the U.K. government, they're not expected to meet with Nigerian president Bola Tinubu during their stay in the West African nation -- Stephanie Busari, CNN, Abuja, Nigeria.
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KINKADE: Tennis superstar Novak Djokovic is making his mark at the Italian Open, the men's world number one sailed to victory in two straight sets, defeating Frenchman Corentin Moutet. The 24 year-old grand slam winner will face Chile's Alejandro Tbilo on
Sunday. Also sailing into the third round is German Alexander Zverev, who could prove to be a potential threat to Djokovic. The tournament favorites, should they face each other, in the last hour.
Well, the world's number two and women's Aryna Sabalenka is still in the tournament by the skin of her teeth. She fought until the bitter end against American Katie Volynets in a match that lasted more than two hours. Sabalenka will face Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine on Sunday.
Well, a massive geomagnetic storm is hitting Earth right now, giving people in many places across the globe a rare view of the northern lights. The sky over Stratfordshire, England, turned green. In the U.S. the northern lights were seen as far south as Georgia and Florida, painting the sky pink.
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Well, the Space Weather Prediction Center says we haven't seen a solar storm this intense in more than 20 years and it should continue for the next few days. The storm could affect the power grid as well as satellite and radio communications. We are watching this story closely and we will keep you updated in the hours ahead.
Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Lynda Kinkade in Atlanta. Another hour of NEWSROOM is just ahead with my colleague, Kim Brunhuber.
