But there's a darker side to this showy performance. Here on Earth, telecommunications and electric systems can be damaged by solar storms. Eleven years ago, at the height of the last solar cycle, solar storms plunged Quebec and six million people into darkness by knocking out that region's power grid. In 1998, a solar storm disabled the Galaxy IV satellite, silencing pagers, gas pumps and ATM machines. Radiation from the storms could also endanger our astronauts.
Experts say solar storms can also affect the weather.
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