what would travelling at light speed look like

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Here's What Actually Happens When You Travel at the Speed of Light, According to NASA

NASA created a fun video to answer all of our burning questions about near-light-speed travel.

Ever wish you could travel at the speed of light to your favorite destinations ? Once you see the reality of that speed, you may rethink everything.

"There are some important things you should probably know about approaching the speed of light," NASA's video, Guide to Near-light-speed Travel , explains. "First, a lot of weird things can happen, like time and space getting all bent out of shape."

According to the video, if you're traveling at nearly the speed of light, the clock inside your rocket would show it takes less time to travel to your destination than it would on Earth. But, since the clocks at home would be moving at a standard rate you'd return home to everyone else being quite a bit older.

"Also, because you're going so fast, what would otherwise be just a few hydrogen atoms that you'd run into quickly becomes a lot of dangerous particles. So you should probably have shields that keep them from frying your ship and also you."

Finally, the video tackles the fact that even if you were moving at the speed of light, the "universe is also a very big place, so you might be in for some surprises." For example, your rocket's clock will say it takes about nine months to get from Earth to the edge of the solar system. An Earth clock would say it took about a year and a half. Fortunately, NASA astronauts have a slew of tips for avoiding jet lag along the way.

"If you want to get to farther out vacation spots," the video explains, "you'll probably need more than a few extra snacks. A trip to the Andromeda Galaxy, our nearest large neighbor galaxy, can take over one million years. And a trip to the farthest known galaxy where it currently sits might take over 15 billion years, which is more vacation time than I think I'll ever have."

The video doesn't explain how your rocket will travel at the speed of light. Our technology just isn't there yet, but maybe the aliens will share that tech with us soon. Until then, you can track the first crew launch of Artemis II , a rocket that will fly around the moon in 2024 before making its first lunar landing in 2025.

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This is what it would really look like to travel at near-lightspeed

It's one of the most iconic images in all of science fiction: the stretching of stars as a ship makes the jump to lightspeed. But as a group of physics students at the University of Leicester has revealed, it wouldn't actually look like this. Instead, and assuming a ship could travel at nearly the speed of light, a crew would see a giant, fuzzy orb in the distance. And as the students' approximations have shown, that's not the half of it.

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For their study, the students assumed that the Millennium Falcon (yes, this was the wording used in the study ) is traveling at 99.99995 percent the speed of light ( c ) as it zips past the Earth towards the Sun (at a distance of 1 AU). Obviously, in keeping with the laws established by Albert Einstein, and unlike some sci-fi interpretations of faster-than-light space travel (i.e. "hyperspace"), the students could not assume a value greater than c .

The team, which consisted of Riley Connors, Katie Dexter, Joshua Argyle, and Cameron Scoular, discovered that, as the crew approaches near-lightspeed, they would see a central disc of bright light — the cosmic background radiation left over from the Big Bang.

And fascinatingly, they would not see any signs of stars in the distance or in the peripheries. This would be on account of a cosmological Doppler effect — the same effect that causes a police car siren or train bell to change pitch as it travels past an observer.

In this case, instead of a police car or train zipping past, a Doppler blueshift effect would be created by the electromagnetic radiation — including visible light — that is rapidly moving towards the crew. This effect, say the researchers, would shorten the wavelength of electromagnetic radiation. From the perspective of Han, Luke, and Leia, the wavelength of the light from neighboring stars would decrease and shift out of the visible spectrum into the X-ray range — thus making these stars invisible to the human eye.

Consequently, the Millennium Falcon 's crew would be limited to seeing a central orb of light as the cosmic microwave background radiation is shifted into the visible spectrum (this background radiation was caused by the Big Bang and is spread evenly across the universe).

And interestingly, the students also realized that, when traveling at such an intense speed, a ship would be subject to incredible pressure exerted by X-rays — an effect that would push back against the ship, causing it to slow down. The researchers likened the effect to the high pressure exerted against deep-ocean submersibles exploring extreme depths. To deal with this, a spaceship would have to store extra amounts of energy to compensate for this added pressure.

Additionally, the crew would be well advised to wear eye protection, and to somehow protect themselves from harmful X-ray radiation.

The study was published in this year's University of Leicester's Journal of Physics Special Topics . It typically features original short papers written by students in their final year of their four-year Master of Physics degree, where they're encouraged to be imaginative with their topics.

You can read the entire study here .

Supplementary source and image: University of Leicester .

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What would you see if you could travel at the speed of light?

Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity was born from this very question, and the answer is as weird as you'd expect.

Robert Matthews

Asked by: Pete Groves, London

That's what Einstein asked himself as a schoolboy and it led him to his famous Special Theory of Relativity. Its equations show that objects look increasingly distorted as the speed of travel increases, with the view ahead becoming progressively brighter. Then truly bizarre effects start to kick in, with objects far ahead apparently moving further away, while those behind come into view.

Eventually, at lightspeed there's nothing but a dazzingly bright spot of light surrounded by complete blackness. Weird!

• Does the speed of light ever change?
• What is the speed of thought?

Subscribe to BBC Focus magazine for fascinating new Q&As every month and follow @sciencefocusQA on Twitter for your daily dose of fun science facts.

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What is the speed of light? Here’s the history, discovery of the cosmic speed limit

On one hand, the speed of light is just a number: 299,792,458 meters per second. And on the other, it’s one of the most important constants that appears in nature and defines the relationship of causality itself.

As far as we can measure, it is a constant. It is the same speed for every observer in the entire universe. This constancy was first established in the late 1800’s with the experiments of Albert Michelson and Edward Morley at Case Western Reserve University . They attempted to measure changes in the speed of light as the Earth orbited around the Sun. They found no such variation, and no experiment ever since then has either.

Observations of the cosmic microwave background, the light released when the universe was 380,000 years old, show that the speed of light hasn’t measurably changed in over 13.8 billion years.

In fact, we now define the speed of light to be a constant, with a precise speed of 299,792,458 meters per second. While it remains a remote possibility in deeply theoretical physics that light may not be a constant, for all known purposes it is a constant, so it’s better to just define it and move on with life.

How was the speed of light first measured?

In 1676 the Danish astronomer Ole Christensen Romer made the first quantitative measurement of how fast light travels. He carefully observed the orbit of Io, the innermost moon of Jupiter. As the Earth circles the Sun in its own orbit, sometimes it approaches Jupiter and sometimes it recedes away from it. When the Earth is approaching Jupiter, the path that light has to travel from Io is shorter than when the Earth is receding away from Jupiter. By carefully measuring the changes to Io’s orbital period, Romer calculated a speed of light of around 220,000 kilometers per second.

Observations continued to improve until by the 19 th century astronomers and physicists had developed the sophistication to get very close to the modern value. In 1865, James Clerk Maxwell made a remarkable discovery. He was investigating the properties of electricity and magnetism, which for decades had remained mysterious in unconnected laboratory experiments around the world. Maxwell found that electricity and magnetism were really two sides of the same coin, both manifestations of a single electromagnetic force.

As Maxwell explored the consequences of his new theory, he found that changing magnetic fields can lead to changing electric fields, which then lead to a new round of changing magnetic fields. The fields leapfrog over each other and can even travel through empty space. When Maxwell went to calculate the speed of these electromagnetic waves, he was surprised to see the speed of light pop out – the first theoretical calculation of this important number.

What is the most precise measurement of the speed of light?

Because it is defined to be a constant, there’s no need to measure it further. The number we’ve defined is it, with no uncertainty, no error bars. It’s done. But the speed of light is just that – a speed. The number we choose to represent it depends on the units we use: kilometers versus miles, seconds versus hours, and so on. In fact, physicists commonly just set the speed of light to be 1 to make their calculations easier. So instead of trying to measure the speed light travels, physicists turn to more precisely measuring other units, like the length of the meter or the duration of the second. In other words, the defined value of the speed of light is used to establish the length of other units like the meter.

How does light slow down?

Yes, the speed of light is always a constant. But it slows down whenever it travels through a medium like air or water. How does this work? There are a few different ways to present an answer to this question, depending on whether you prefer a particle-like picture or a wave-like picture.

In a particle-like picture, light is made of tiny little bullets called photons. All those photons always travel at the speed of light, but as light passes through a medium those photons get all tangled up, bouncing around among all the molecules of the medium. This slows down the overall propagation of light, because it takes more time for the group of photons to make it through.

In a wave-like picture, light is made of electromagnetic waves. When these waves pass through a medium, they get all the charged particles in motion, which in turn generate new electromagnetic waves of their own. These interfere with the original light, forcing it to slow down as it passes through.

Either way, light always travels at the same speed, but matter can interfere with its travel, making it slow down.

Why is the speed of light important?

The speed of light is important because it’s about way more than, well, the speed of light. In the early 1900’s Einstein realized just how special this speed is. The old physics, dominated by the work of Isaac Newton, said that the universe had a fixed reference frame from which we could measure all motion. This is why Michelson and Morley went looking for changes in the speed, because it should change depending on our point of view. But their experiments showed that the speed was always constant, so what gives?

Einstein decided to take this experiment at face value. He assumed that the speed of light is a true, fundamental constant. No matter where you are, no matter how fast you’re moving, you’ll always see the same speed.

This is wild to think about. If you’re traveling at 99% the speed of light and turn on a flashlight, the beam will race ahead of you at…exactly the speed of light, no more, no less. If you’re coming from the opposite direction, you’ll still also measure the exact same speed.

This constancy forms the basis of Einstein’s special theory of relativity, which tells us that while all motion is relative – different observers won’t always agree on the length of measurements or the duration of events – some things are truly universal, like the speed of light.

Can you go faster than light speed?

Nope. Nothing can. Any particle with zero mass must travel at light speed. But anything with mass (which is most of the universe) cannot. The problem is relativity. The faster you go, the more energy you have. But we know from Einstein’s relativity that energy and mass are the same thing. So the more energy you have, the more mass you have, which makes it harder for you to go even faster. You can get as close as you want to the speed of light, but to actually crack that barrier takes an infinite amount of energy. So don’t even try.

How is the speed at which light travels related to causality?

If you think you can find a cheat to get around the limitations of light speed, then I need to tell you about its role in special relativity. You see, it’s not just about light. It just so happens that light travels at this special speed, and it was the first thing we discovered to travel at this speed. So it could have had another name. Indeed, a better name for this speed might be “the speed of time.”

Related: Is time travel possible? An astrophysicist explains

We live in a universe of causes and effects. All effects are preceded by a cause, and all causes lead to effects. The speed of light limits how quickly causes can lead to effects. Because it’s a maximum speed limit for any motion or interaction, in a given amount of time there’s a limit to what I can influence. If I want to tap you on the shoulder and you’re right next to me, I can do it right away. But if you’re on the other side of the planet, I have to travel there first. The motion of me traveling to you is limited by the speed of light, so that sets how quickly I can tap you on the shoulder – the speed light travels dictates how quickly a single cause can create an effect.

The ability to go faster than light would allow effects to happen before their causes. In essence, time travel into the past would be possible with faster-than-light travel. Since we view time as the unbroken chain of causes and effects going from the past to the future, breaking the speed of light would break causality, which would seriously undermine our sense of the forward motion of time.

Why does light travel at this speed?

No clue. It appears to us as a fundamental constant of nature. We have no theory of physics that explains its existence or why it has the value that it does. We hope that a future understanding of nature will provide this explanation, but right now all investigations are purely theoretical. For now, we just have to take it as a given.

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NASA's Guide to Near-light-speed Travel

• Released Friday, August 14, 2020
• Produced by:
• Chris Smith
• Written by:
• Visualizations by:
• Krystofer Kim
• Scientific consulting by:
• Ryan DeRosa
• and Scott Noble

So, you've just put the finishing touches on upgrades to your spaceship, and now it can fly at almost the speed of light. We're not quite sure how you pulled it off, but congratulations! Before you fly off on your next vacation, however, watch this handy video to learn more about near-light-speed safety considerations, travel times, and distances between some popular destinations around the universe. You can also download shorter clips from the video and printable postcards to send to your friends.

Near-light-speed Travel GuideThis handy video will help acquaint you with the quirks of near-light-speed travel, expected travel times, and the distances to some popular (at least, we think so) destinations!Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "The Tiptoe Strut" from Universal Production MusicComplete transcript available.

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Complete transcript available.

Near Light Speed 101: Effects of Near-light-speed TravelTravel at near the speed of light offers a few quirks you should be aware of, from time and space weirdness to protecting yourself from dangerous cosmic particles. This video covers some of the important ones!Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Dinner With the Vicar" from Universal Production MusicComplete transcript available.

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Near Light Speed 101: Near-light-speed Travel TimesEven if you've figured out how to travel at almost the speed of light, the universe is still a huge place! Watch this video to learn more about how long it takes to cruise around the cosmos.Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Dinner With the Vicar" from Universal Production MusicComplete transcript available.

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*compared to friends that stayed behind.

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Visit sunny Glerbax-29, home of eight unique, beautiful planets! The locals call it the solar system.

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A vacation to Andromeda, our nearest spiral neighbor galaxy, is a long, long, long, long, long trip, but it's worth it! And this postcard will prove it to your friends.

• Astrophysics

Please give credit for this item to: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

• Chris Smith  (USRA)
• Krystofer Kim  (USRA)
• Ryan DeRosa  (NASA/GSFC)
• Scott Noble  (NASA/GSFC)

Release date

This page was originally published on Friday, August 14, 2020. This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:44 PM EDT.

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Three ways to travel at (nearly) the speed of light.

Katy Mersmann

1) electromagnetic fields, 2) magnetic explosions, 3) wave-particle interactions.

One hundred years ago today, on May 29, 1919, measurements of a solar eclipse offered verification for Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Even before that, Einstein had developed the theory of special relativity, which revolutionized the way we understand light. To this day, it provides guidance on understanding how particles move through space — a key area of research to keep spacecraft and astronauts safe from radiation.

The theory of special relativity showed that particles of light, photons, travel through a vacuum at a constant pace of 670,616,629 miles per hour — a speed that’s immensely difficult to achieve and impossible to surpass in that environment. Yet all across space, from black holes to our near-Earth environment, particles are, in fact, being accelerated to incredible speeds, some even reaching 99.9% the speed of light.

One of NASA’s jobs is to better understand how these particles are accelerated. Studying these superfast, or relativistic, particles can ultimately help protect missions exploring the solar system, traveling to the Moon, and they can teach us more about our galactic neighborhood: A well-aimed near-light-speed particle can trip onboard electronics and too many at once could have negative radiation effects on space-faring astronauts as they travel to the Moon — or beyond.

Here are three ways that acceleration happens.

Most of the processes that accelerate particles to relativistic speeds work with electromagnetic fields — the same force that keeps magnets on your fridge. The two components, electric and magnetic fields, like two sides of the same coin, work together to whisk particles at relativistic speeds throughout the universe.

In essence, electromagnetic fields accelerate charged particles because the particles feel a force in an electromagnetic field that pushes them along, similar to how gravity pulls at objects with mass. In the right conditions, electromagnetic fields can accelerate particles at near-light-speed.

On Earth, electric fields are often specifically harnessed on smaller scales to speed up particles in laboratories. Particle accelerators, like the Large Hadron Collider and Fermilab, use pulsed electromagnetic fields to accelerate charged particles up to 99.99999896% the speed of light. At these speeds, the particles can be smashed together to produce collisions with immense amounts of energy. This allows scientists to look for elementary particles and understand what the universe was like in the very first fractions of a second after the Big Bang. 

Download related video from NASA Goddard’s Scientific Visualization Studio

Magnetic fields are everywhere in space, encircling Earth and spanning the solar system. They even guide charged particles moving through space, which spiral around the fields.

When these magnetic fields run into each other, they can become tangled. When the tension between the crossed lines becomes too great, the lines explosively snap and realign in a process known as magnetic reconnection. The rapid change in a region’s magnetic field creates electric fields, which causes all the attendant charged particles to be flung away at high speeds. Scientists suspect magnetic reconnection is one way that particles — for example, the solar wind, which is the constant stream of charged particles from the Sun — is accelerated to relativistic speeds.

Those speedy particles also create a variety of side-effects near planets.  Magnetic reconnection occurs close to us at points where the Sun’s magnetic field pushes against Earth’s magnetosphere — its protective magnetic environment. When magnetic reconnection occurs on the side of Earth facing away from the Sun, the particles can be hurled into Earth’s upper atmosphere where they spark the auroras. Magnetic reconnection is also thought to be responsible around other planets like Jupiter and Saturn, though in slightly different ways.

NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft were designed and built to focus on understanding all aspects of magnetic reconnection. Using four identical spacecraft, the mission flies around Earth to catch magnetic reconnection in action. The results of the analyzed data can help scientists understand particle acceleration at relativistic speeds around Earth and across the universe.

Particles can be accelerated by interactions with electromagnetic waves, called wave-particle interactions. When electromagnetic waves collide, their fields can become compressed. Charged particles bouncing back and forth between the waves can gain energy similar to a ball bouncing between two merging walls.

These types of interactions are constantly occurring in near-Earth space and are responsible for accelerating particles to speeds that can damage electronics on spacecraft and satellites in space. NASA missions, like the Van Allen Probes , help scientists understand wave-particle interactions.

Wave-particle interactions are also thought to be responsible for accelerating some cosmic rays that originate outside our solar system. After a supernova explosion, a hot, dense shell of compressed gas called a blast wave is ejected away from the stellar core. Filled with magnetic fields and charged particles, wave-particle interactions in these bubbles can launch high-energy cosmic rays at 99.6% the speed of light. Wave-particle interactions may also be partially responsible for accelerating the solar wind and cosmic rays from the Sun.

Download this and related videos in HD formats from NASA Goddard’s Scientific Visualization Studio

By Mara Johnson-Groh NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center , Greenbelt, Md.

July 3, 2018

Astronomy at the Speed of Light

Future space probes traveling at relativistic velocities would offer a unique vantage point for studying the universe

By Bing Zhang & The Conversation US

The binary stars of Alpha Centauri, our nearest neighboring star system, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. What would a ‘relativistic camera’ see while traveling at nearly light speed toward these nearby stars?

ESA and NASA

The following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation , an online publication covering the latest research.

Astronomers strive to observe the universe via ever more advanced techniques. Whenever researchers invent a new method, unprecedented information is collected and people’s understanding of the cosmos deepens.

An ambitious program to blast cameras far beyond the solar system was announced in April 2016 by internet investor and science philanthropist Yuri Milner, late physicist Stephen Hawking and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Called “ Breakthrough Starshot ,” the idea is to send a bunch of tiny nano-spacecraft to the sun’s closest stellar neighbor, the three-star Alpha Centauri system. Traveling at around 20 percent the speed of light—so as fast as 100 million miles per hour—the craft and their tiny cameras would aim for the smallest but closest star in the system, Proxima Centari, and its planet Proxima b, 4.26 light-years from Earth.

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Breakthrough Starshot aims to establish proof of concept for a ‘nanocraft’ driven by a light beam.

The Breakthrough Starshot team’s goal will rely on a number of as-yet unproven technologies. The plan is to use light sails to get these spacecraft further and faster than anything that’s come before—lasers on Earth will push the tiny ships via their super-thin and reflective sails. I have another idea that could piggyback on this technology as the project is gearing up: Researchers could get valuable data from these mobile observatories, even directly test Einstein’s theory of special relativity, long before they get anywhere close to Alpha Centauri.

Technical challenges abound

Achieving Breakthrough Starshot’s goal is by no means an easy task. The project relies on continuing technological development on three independent fronts.

First, researchers will need to dramatically decrease the size and weight of microelectronic components to make a camera. Each nanocraft is planned to be no more than  a few grams in total  – and that will have to include not just the camera, but also other payloads including power supply and communication equipment.

Another challenge will be to build thin, ultra-light and highly reflective materials to serve as the “sail” for the camera. One possibility is to have  a single-layer graphene sail—just a molecule thick, only 0.345 nanometer .

The Breakthrough Starshot team will benefit from the rising power and falling cost of laser beams. Lasers with  100-Gigawatt power  are needed to accelerate the cameras from the ground. Just as wind fills a sailboat’s sails and pushes it forward, the photons from a high-energy laser beam can propel an ultralight reflective sail forward as they bounce back.

With the projected technology development rate, it will likely be at least two more decades before scientists can launch a camera traveling with a speed a significant fraction of the speed of light.

Even if such a camera could be built and accelerated, several more challenges must be overcome in order to fulfill the dream of reaching the Alpha Centauri system. Can researchers aim the cameras correctly so they reach the stellar system? Can the camera even survive the near 20-year journey without being damaged? And if it beats the odds and the trip goes well, will it be possible to transmit the data—say, images—back to Earth over such a huge distance?

Introducing ‘relativistic astronomy’

My collaborator Kunyang Li, a graduate student at Georgia Institute of Technology, and I  see potential in all these technologies  even before they’re perfected and ready to head out for Alpha Centauri.

When a camera travels in space at close to the speed of light—what could be called “relativistic speed”—Einstein’s special theory of relativity plays a role in how the images taken by the camera will be modified. Einstein’s theory states that in different “rest frames” observers have different measures of the lengths of space and time. That is, space and time are relative. How differently the two observers measure things depends on how fast they’re moving with respect to each other. If the relative speed is close to the speed of light, their observations can differ significantly.

The Doppler effect explains how a source moving away from you will stretch the wavelengths of its light and look redder, while if it’s moving closer the wavelengths will shorten and look bluer. Credit:  Aleš Tošovský Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Special relativity also affects many other things physicists measure—for example, the frequency and intensity of light and also the size of an object’s appearance. In the rest frame of the camera, the entire universe is moving at a good fraction of the speed of light in the opposite direction of the camera’s own motion. To an imaginary person on board, thanks to the different spacetimes experienced by him and everyone back on Earth, the light from a star or galaxy would appear bluer, brighter and more compact, and the angular separation between two objects would look smaller.

Our idea is to take advantage of these features of special relativity to observe familiar objects in the relativistic camera’s different spacetime rest frame. This can provide a new mode to study astronomy—what we’re calling “relativistic astronomy.”

What could the camera capture?

So, a relativistic camera would naturally serve as a  spectrograph , allowing researchers to look at an intrinsically redder band of light. It would act as a lens, magnifying the amount of light it collects. And it would be a wide-field camera, letting astronomers observe more objects within the same field of view of the camera.

An example of redshift: On the right, absorption lines occur closer to the red end of the spectrum. Credit:  Georg Wiora Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 2.5)

Here’s one example of the kind of data we could gather using the relativistic camera. Due to the expansion of the universe, the light from the early universe is redder by the time it reaches Earth than when it started. Physicists call this effect redshifting: As the light travels, its wavelength stretches as it expands along with the universe. Red light has longer wavelengths than blue light. All this means that to see red-shifted light from the young universe, one must use the difficult-to-observe infrared wavelengths to collect it.

Enter the relativistic camera. To a camera moving at close to the speed of light, such redshifted light becomes bluer—that is, it’s now blueshifted. The effect of the camera’s motion counteracts the effect of the universe’s expansion. Now an astronomer could catch that light using the familiar visible light camera. The same Doppler boosting effect also allows the faint light from the early universe to be amplified, aiding detection. Observing the spectral features of distant objects can allow us to reveal the history of the early universe, especially  how the universe evolved after it became transparent  380,000 years after the Big Bang.

Another exciting aspect of relativistic astronomy is that humankind can directly test the principles of special relativity using macroscopic measurements for the first time. Comparing the observations collected on the relativistic camera and those collected from ground, astronomers could precisely test the fundamental predictions of Einstein’s relativity regarding change of frequency, flux and light travel direction in different rest frames.

Compared with the ultimate goals of the Starshot project, observing the universe using relativistic cameras should be easier. Astronomers wouldn’t need to worry about aiming the camera, since it could get interesting results when sent in any direction. The data transmission problem is somewhat alleviated since the distances wouldn’t be as great. Same with the technical difficulty of protecting the camera.

We propose that trying out relativistic cameras for astronomical observations could be a forerunner of the full Starshot project. And humankind will have a new astronomical “observatory” to study the universe in an unprecedented way. History suggests that opening a new window like this will unveil many previously undetected treasures.

This article was originally published on The Conversation . Read the original article .

pale blue dot

Speed of Light [perfect visual explanations]

The speed of light is the Universal speed limit – nothing can travel faster than light . In the vacuum (commonly denoted c), its exact value is 299,792,458 meters per second (around 186,000 miles per second). In other words, if you could travel at the speed of light, you could go around the Earth 7.5 times in one second.

It might seem blazing fast, but, in fact, when you think of the vast distances between the celestial objects in the Universe, the speed of light is actually torturously slow.

For example, Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to the Sun is 4.3 light-years away from Earth – the light emitted from them takes 4.3 years to reach us.

Related: Leaving Solar System at the Speed Of Light

Our Milky Way galaxy is around 150-200 thousand light-years in diameter. That means sending messages back and forth on either side of the galaxy would take hundreds of thousands of years. This is one of the reasons that there may be no Kardashev Type III civilization in the Universe (a civilization that can control its own galaxy – you can think of it as Isaac Asimov’s galactic empire in the Foundation series).

As Douglas Adams pointed out,  “ Space is big . Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is.”

Even in our own solar system , the speed of light is so slow, communicating with spacecraft takes sometimes hours because of that. For example, it takes more than 21 hours for the signal to reach Voyager 1 (so it is more than 21 light hours away from the Earth).

Speed of Light: see how torturously slow it is

To put things into perspective, NASA Goddard Planetary Scientist James O’ Donoghue created three animations to show how fast (or how slow) the speed of light is.

The first animation shows the light orbiting the Earth. The equatorial circumference of Earth is 40,075 km (24,901 miles). If our planet had no atmosphere (air refracts and slows downlight a little bit), a photon skimming along its surface could lap the equator nearly 7.5 times every second.

The second animation shows the light is traveling between the Earth and the moon. The average distance between the Earth and the moon is 384,400 km (238,855 miles). It takes a little more than a second for a photon to cover that distance.

The third animation shows the light traveling between the Earth and Mars. Now the speed of lights starts looking really slow. And this is just Mars, one of the closest planetary bodies to Earth.

Please note that In theory, the closest that Earth and Mars would approach each other would be when Mars is at its closest point to the sun (perihelion) and Earth is at its farthest (aphelion). This would put the planets only 33.9 million miles (54.6 million kilometers) apart. However, this has never happened in recorded history. The closest recorded approach of the two planets occurred in 2003 when they were only 34.8 million miles (56 million km) apart.

It would take around 140 hours to reach the edge of the solar system a photon emitted by the Sun – see the previous article titled “ Leaving the solar system at the speed of light “.

What Star Trek’s warp speeds would actually look like with real distance, in real-time

Dr. James O’Donoghue published another video showing what Star Trek’s warp speeds actually look like with real distance, in real-time.

Related: Carl Sagan explains the speed of light while riding a bicycle

• How Fast Does Light Travel? | The Speed of Light on Space.com
• “The speed of light is torturously slow, and these 3 simple animations by a scientist at NASA prove it” on Business Insider
• The speed of Light on Wikipedia
• How Long Does It Take to Get to Mars? on Space.com
• Warp Drive on Wikipedia
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Watch: What our solar system would look like when traveling at the speed of light

This post has been corrected.

This past week, NASA announced the discovery of the most Earth-like planet yet . NASA described the planet, Kepler-452b, and its respective sun as the pair that “most closely resemble the Earth and our Sun.” The planet is five times the mass of Earth, but its orbit is almost identical, around a star of similar temperature to our sun.

The catch: Kepler-452b is 1,400 light years away from Earth. Of course, relative to the massive size of the universe, that makes it basically our next-door neighbor. But it would take an insanely long time to get there.

Light moves at 186,000 miles (299,000 km) per second, or 671 million miles per hour. Commercial airplanes travel at 500-600 mph. The world’s fastest manned aircraft, NASA’s X-43A scramjet,  travels at around 7,000 mph, nearly 100,000 times slower than the speed of light.

And our fastest spacecraft, New Horizons , which this month flew past Pluto, was traveling at more than 30,000 mph . It took 10 years to reach Pluto, and Pluto is currently  4.8 billion km  from Earth. That’s the distance light covers in a little under four-and-a-half hours.

So at that rate, flying to Kepler-452b would take nearly 28 million years.

The video below by Alphonse Swinehart helps to put all this into perspective. If you could travel away from the Sun at the speed of light—which is physically impossible—and look back at the Sun as you did so (and ignoring the fact that traveling so fast would in fact  severely distort what you see , as well as your perception of time), it would look like this:

It takes over eight minutes of watching the solar system whizzing by at the speed of light before the Earth comes into view. At the end of the video, after 45 minutes, Jupiter finally appears. To reach Saturn, the next closest planet, would take another 36 minutes, and a further three hours or so to reach Pluto. And only then you’d settle in for the largely uneventful 1,400-year ride to Kepler-452b.

Another perspective tool is  this website , which scales our entire solar system in relation to the moon as one computer pixel.

So while we continue to get excited by the prospect of discovering life outside of our own sliver of the universe, it’s important not to forget how far away that life is—if it exists at all.

Correction:  An earlier version of this post said that it would take 1.8 million instead of 28 million years for New Horizons to reach Pluto.

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Warp Speed: What Hyperspace Would Really Look Like

The science fiction vision of stars flashing by as streaks when spaceships travel faster than light isn't what the scene would actually look like, a team of physics students says.

Instead, the view out the windows of a vehicle traveling through hyperspace would be more like a centralized bright glow, calculations show.

The finding contradicts the familiar images of stretched out starlight streaking past the windows of the Millennium Falcon in "Star Wars" and the Starship Enterprise in "Star Trek." In those films and television series, as spaceships engage warp drive or hyperdrive and approach the speed of light , stars morph from points of light to long streaks that stretch out past the ship.

But passengers on the Millennium Falcon or the Enterprise actually wouldn't be able to see stars at all when traveling that fast, found a group of physics Masters students at England's University of Leicester. Rather, a phenomenon called the Doppler Effect, which affects the wavelength of radiation from moving sources, would cause stars' light to shift out of the visible spectrum and into the X-ray range, where human eyes wouldn't be able to see it, the students found. [ How Interstellar Space Travel Works (Infographic) ]

"The resultant effects we worked out were based on Einstein's theory of Special Relativity, so while we may not be used to them in our daily lives, Han Solo and his crew should certainly understand its implications," Leicester student Joshua Argyle said in a statement.

The Doppler Effect is the reason why an ambulance's siren sounds higher pitched when it's coming at you compared to when it's moving away — the sound's frequency becomes higher, making its wavelength shorter, and changing its pitch.

The same thing would happen to the light of stars when a spaceship began to move toward them at significant speed. And other light, such as the pervasive glow of the universe called the cosmic microwave background radiation, which is left over from the Big Bang, would be shifted out of the microwave range and into the visible spectrum, the students found.

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"If the Millennium Falcon existed and really could travel that fast, sunglasses would certainly be advisable," said research team member Riley Connors. "On top of this, the ship would need something to protect the crew from harmful X-ray radiation."

The increased X-ray radiation from shifted starlight would even push back on a spaceship traveling in hyperdrive, the team found, slowing down the vehicle with a pressure similar to the force felt at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. In fact, such a spacecraft would need to carry extra energy reserves to counter this pressure and press ahead.

Whether the scientific reality of these effects will be taken into consideration on future Star Wars films is still an open question.

"Perhaps Disney should take the physical implications of such high speed travel into account in their forthcoming films," said team member Katie Dexter.

Connors, Dexter, Argyle, and fourth team member Cameron Scoular published their findings in this year's issue of the University of Leicester's Journal of Physics Special Topics.

Editor's Note: This article was updated to correct the following error: As an ambulance moves closer to an observer, its wavelength becomes shorter, not longer.

You can follow SPACE.com assistant managing editor Clara Moskowitz on Twitter  @ClaraMoskowitz .   Follow SPACE.com on Twitter  @Spacedotcom . We're also on  Facebook  &  Google+ .

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

Clara Moskowitz is a science and space writer who joined the Space.com team in 2008 and served as Assistant Managing Editor from 2011 to 2013. Clara has a bachelor's degree in astronomy and physics from Wesleyan University, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She covers everything from astronomy to human spaceflight and once aced a NASTAR suborbital spaceflight training program for space missions. Clara is currently Associate Editor of Scientific American. To see her latest project is, follow Clara on Twitter.

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What would it be like to travel faster than the speed of light?

Is it even possible?

Physicists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) have made a mind-bending — and rule-bending — discovery: They've measured strange subatomic particles called neutrinos traveling faster than the speed of light. "Superluminal travel" may be a common trope in science fiction, but Einstein's theory of special relativity strictly forbids it in the real world, as beating photons in a footrace would seem to require infinite energy.

So either the new data is wrong, or Einstein topples — along with almost every tenet of modern physics.

Imagine the latter scenario. What would a lawless universe, in which particles have free reign to zip around heedless of the light-speed limit , be like? How would your surroundings look and feel if you were that particle?

According to Michael Ibison, a senior research physicist at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Austin, Texas, such a world would be "spooky." First off, it's unclear how you would see light if you were zooming past it. "Thinking about what the world would look like automatically makes you wonder what happens to your ability to see light , period," Ibison, who has studied the possibility of superluminal particles, told Life's Little Mysteries. "You'd be running into [light] that is usually running away from you. I suspect that in order to absorb light, you would have to emit it yourself."

Related: What would happen if the speed of light was much lower?

The concepts of cause and effect — of time flowing in one direction — also shatter in a superluminal world. Imagine riding on a spacecraft made of faster-than-light neutrinos rocketing away from Earth. TV broadcasts playing the day's news are also emanating into space, and those are traveling at light speed. "If you got on a neutrino spacecraft and travelled out to space at neutrino speed, you'd catch up with the TV broadcasts and overtake them, and you would start to see the video of the news running backwards," Ibison said. As the stream of transmissions receded behind you, they would run backward at whatever your excess speed is over and above their speed — the speed of light.

What if you were standing still in a speed-limitless universe? What would you see then?

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According to Ibison, the situation is analogous to standing on the ground as a supersonic jet passes overhead. Because these jets travel faster than the speed of sound, you see them before you hear them. When the sound does finally hit you, it's in the form of a sonic boom — a shock wave that builds up as sound from the aircraft gets bunched together behind it.

— Can matter travel at light speed?

— What is the smallest particle in the universe? (What about the largest?)

— What if there were no gravity?

Similarly, he said, "If something were traveling faster than the speed of light, such as an airplane made of neutrinos, you wouldn't see it until after it had gone past you. Any light it emitted would be trailing behind in its wake. You would not see the neutrino plane until after it has gone past — and then only if it contained something that reflected or emitted light. And just as a plane passing through the sound barrier emits a sonic boom, a superluminal craft passing through light speed would emit a flash of light."

Again, no one is saying for certain that these scenarios are real. According to Hugh Gallagher, a particle physicist at Tufts University who works on the MINOS neutrino experiment, the CERN result will have to be replicated many times over before he and his colleagues abandon the tenets of special relativity . "But if the results are true, then a lot of the things we don't think of as possible suddenly become open to discussion again," Gallagher said.

Originally published on Live Science.

Natalie Wolchover was a staff writer for Live Science from 2010 to 2012 and is currently a senior physics writer and editor for Quanta Magazine. She holds a bachelor's degree in physics from Tufts University and has studied physics at the University of California, Berkeley. Along with the staff of Quanta, Wolchover won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory writing for her work on the building of the James Webb Space Telescope. Her work has also appeared in the The Best American Science and Nature Writing and The Best Writing on Mathematics, Nature, The New Yorker and Popular Science. She was the 2016 winner of the  Evert Clark/Seth Payne Award, an annual prize for young science journalists, as well as the winner of the 2017 Science Communication Award for the American Institute of Physics. 

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Warp speed possible! Scientists discover loophole making faster-than-light travel achievable

NEW YORK — It’s a staple of science fiction: a spaceship zipping through the cosmos at faster-than-light speeds, boldly going where no one has gone before. According to Einstein’s theory of relativity, however, going faster than the speed of light is off-limits in the real world. So warp drives, like the one powering the Enterprise in Star Trek , have always been firmly in the realm of imagination — until now.

A new study published in Classical and Quantum Gravity suggests that a real-life warp drive might not be as far-fetched as we thought. The key, scientists say, is to look at the problem through the lens of Einstein’s theory of gravity : general relativity.

In general relativity, gravity isn’t a force like we normally think of it. Instead, massive objects like stars and planets create curves and dips in the fabric of spacetime itself. Smaller objects, like spaceships (or the apple that fell on Newton’s head), simply follow these curves. It’s a bit like how a heavy ball creates a dent on a rubber sheet, causing marbles to roll towards it.

The traditional sci-fi concept of a warp drive involves distorting spacetime in a very specific way: compressing it in front of the ship and expanding it behind. In theory, this would allow the ship to effectively travel faster than light without actually exceeding the speed limit locally. It’s almost like a cheat code for bypassing the laws of physics!

However, previous studies of this idea suggested that it would require exotic forms of matter with “negative energy density.” In our everyday experience, energy is always positive – even in a vacuum, there’s a small positive energy called the “vacuum energy.” Negative energy density, in physics terms, means having less energy than a pure vacuum. This is problematic because the known laws of physics suggest that such negative energy cannot exist in large enough quantities to make a warp drive possible.

This is where the new study comes in. The researchers, hailing from various institutions, including the University of Alabama and the Applied Physics Laboratory, decided to approach the problem from a different angle. Instead of starting with a preconceived notion of what a warp drive should look like, they asked: what kind of spacetime geometry could transport a ship faster than light while obeying the known laws of physics?

The answer, they found, involves a concept called a “shell of regular matter.” Imagine a bubble surrounding the spaceship, but instead of being made of soap, it’s made of massive particles or dark matter . By carefully controlling the density and pressure of this shell, it’s possible to create a “warp bubble” that compresses spacetime in front of the ship and expands it behind, just like the warp drive on shows like Star Trek.

The key difference from science-fiction shows is that this shell has positive energy density everywhere — no exotic negative energy is required. The researchers showed mathematically that this “physical warp drive” obeys all the known energy conditions of general relativity .

Of course, creating such a shell is far beyond our current technological capabilities. The amount of mass required is immense, with the orders of magnitude needed to pull off warp travel more than the mass of the Sun. Moreover, the study only looked at the case of a warp drive moving at a constant velocity slower than light — which travels at 186,000 miles per second. Accelerating to faster-than-light speeds would involve additional challenges that have yet to be worked out.

Nevertheless, this work represents a significant step forward in warp drive theory. It shows that faster-than-light travel might be possible without violating the known laws of physics. It also highlights the power of thinking creatively within the framework of general relativity.

“Although this design requires significant energy, it proves that warp effects can be achieved with conventional matter while adhering to known energy constraints,” researcher Jared Fuchs and the team at Applied Physics write in a statement . “Applied Physics is continuing to make progress as humanity embarks on the Warp Age.”

The study also introduced a tool called “Warp Factory” – a numerical toolkit designed specifically for analyzing warp drive spacetimes. Using this toolkit, the researchers were able to test their warp shell idea and confirm that it satisfies the energy conditions. They also showed that the presence of the warp shell can be detected by the time difference between light beams sent in opposite directions through the shell – a signature of real spacetime distortion, not just a mathematical trick.

So, while we may not be booking our tickets to our closest neighboring star (Alpha Centauri) just yet, the dream of warp drive is looking a little less distant. As scientists continue to push the boundaries of theoretical physics and develop new computational tools, who knows what other sci-fi concepts might leap from the screen into reality? Even on Star Trek , humans didn’t achieve warp speed until 2063 — so there’s still time!

StudyFinds Editor Chris Melore contributed to this report.

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Apocalyptic video shows what would happen if a needle hit planet Earth at the speed of light

Even an object as small as a needle could cause serious damage if it can move at the speed of light..

Dylan Murray

People underestimate just how fast the speed of light truly is.

The speed of light, known by many as the thing that nothing in the universe can outpace, is often used to help explain several phenomena in physics .

However, when used in theoretical situations and computer simulations , the power of an object moving at the speed of light can be seen like never before.

The best example of this comes from the YouTube channel Ridddle , which uploaded a video that simulated what would happen if a small sewing needle hit the Earth from outer space at the speed of light, with the results shocking many viewers.

Now, for full disclosure, because this is merely a simulation of something that could not possibly occur, there is no one sure thing that will happen in the event that a needle traveling at the speed of light hits the Earth. Instead, there are a few possibilities of what would happen with vastly different consequences.

The more likely option is a devastating one, as even a 35mm sewing needle moving at such an absurdly high speed would have a similar effect to that of an atomic bomb , doubling the power of the “Fat Man” bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945.

This would undoubtedly cause total and utter destruction to wherever it lands and the surrounding area. However, that isn’t even the most disastrous possibility.

An alternate possibility would see the needle not explode on impact, instead seeping into the Earth’s crust, creating a hole that allows plasma to Engulf the Earth in insurmountable heat, killing every living in the process before the Earth, as a whole, gets torn apart and eviscerated.

Needless to say, those first two would not be very good for us whatsoever.

Luckily, the third theoretical possibility would end in far less hardship for the human race.

The third and final potential outcome of a needle hitting the Earth at the speed of light is that, due to its shape and speed, the needle could theoretically fly straight through one side of the Earth and out the other with minimal effects on the world at large.

Much better, right?

Interestingly enough, the first and last potential outcomes are similar to what would happen in the event that the needle hit a human instead of the ground.

While it’s possible that the needle would completely eviscerate the human body, there’s also a chance that it simply pierces a small hole through said body, one that could be treated far easier than one would expect.

Ultimately, while some of these possibilities are better than others, let’s just say we’re lucky to live in a universe where needles can’t move at the speed of light.

Topics:  Space , Science , Technology

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What's your chance of seeing the northern lights tonight? A look at Saturday's forecast

Illuminating the night sky with pink, green and gray colors, the northern lights made its appearance in the United Kingdom and the northern half of the United States on Friday. The magical phenomena could happen again tonight.

The show fascinated many onlookers as they took out their phones to capture the beauty of the night sky. On Friday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued extreme (G5) conditions across the United States. A storm of this intensity has not been seen since October 2003. The storm gained the name "Halloween Storm" and caused many power outages in Sweden and damaged transformers in South Africa, according to Earth.com .

Meteorologists have predicted that the northern lights can be visible on Saturday as well as Sunday. If you are going outside to see the northern lights, forecasters want to remind the public that their solar eclipse glasses can be used for viewing the phenomenon.

Here's what you need to know to prepare for the next viewing of the northern lights.

The northern lights: Danced across the US last night. It could happen again Saturday.

What is the cloud forecast Saturday night? Will clouds block the northern lights?

If you missed the aurora borealis Friday night, you might still catch a glimpse on Saturday or Sunday, depending on where you live. But not if clouds get in the way.

The cloud forecast for Saturday night is generally good for most of America, but some of the people who missed their chance last night due to clouds may have a similar problem Saturday, said AccuWeather senior meteorologist Tom Kines. Areas that are likely to be cloudy include New England and Mid-Atlantic regions, as well as parts of the Southern Plains, including Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado.

“Even just a few breaks in the clouds will allow the aurora to be visible,” Kines said. “There’s always hope.”

Peak visibility time Saturday night will be between 9 p.m. and midnight, with some chance until 2 a.m., Kines said. The best views will be in dark areas away from the light pollution of cities, he said, though some reported seeing the auroras Friday night from metro areas like Milwaukee and Detroit.

Sunday night, if there is any aurora to see, those in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic can rejoice, because Kines said the skies should be clearer.

Where can you see the northern lights tonight?

The Space and Weather Prediction Center  offers an experimental forecast map  that shows the aurora may be visible in a wide swath of the U.S. including Oregon, Nebraska, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Other states like California, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida could also see the sky light up again for an encore performance. But visibility will depend on shifting factors that include weather, pollution and cloud cover.

Below are forecast predictions for seeing the northern lights in New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana on Saturday.

Rain and clouds are expected to damper expectations to see the aurora borealis around the Rochester, N.Y. area . Elsewhere in NY, the  Lower Hudson Valley could see the lights again, if weather permits. 

NWS maps predicting the intensity and location of the northern lights Saturday and Sunday show the aurora will be visible in mid to northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula.

Saturday and Sunday are predicted to be mostly cloudy with some rain showers and isolated thunderstorms. The NWS predicted 48% to 58% sky cover in metro Detroit from 8 p.m. Saturday to 2 a.m. Sunday. The western portion of both peninsulas are expected to have a lower cloud cover.

In the Milwaukee area , the evening is expected to bring mostly clear skies and overnight will have scattered clouds, said Tim Halbach, local meteorologist with the National Weather Service. 

Those living around the Cincinnati region could be treated to the northern lights Saturday night with the NWS' Wilmington, Ohio , office forecasting dry, partly cloudy conditions. Clouds shouldn't be an issue as many Ohioans reported seeing the lights Friday despite some cloud cover.

 In a telephone interview, Mike Bettwy, operations chief of the NOAA's  Space Weather Prediction Center  in Boulder, Co, said Indianapolis and surrounding areas might have a better chance of seeing the aurora today and Sunday.

They can expect clear skies tonight, Bettwy said.

"The aurora itself might be actually a little bit less active than it was last night," he told IndyStar. "I think the ability for you to see it will be better because the skies will be clearing out — at least in the Indianapolis area and that immediate vicinity."

Northern lights forecast path

If you want to get a better idea of if you will be able to see the northern lights from your state, check NOAA's aurora forecast tool , which has a 30-minute forecast window. 

The auroras are a natural light display in Earth's sky that are famously best seen in high-latitude regions.

Scientist left amazed by the aurora

The aurora seen on May 10 amazed Antonella Fruscione, an astrophysicist at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. She sent photos of the lights and the April eclipse to her friends in Italy. The northern lights weren't as prominent in Italy as it was in other places.

"And I sent them the picture that I took at the solar eclipse and I said, 'Can you imagine how fortunate I was this year, one month apart, I see these two incredible spectacles of the universe,'" she recalled telling them.

The phenomena seen Friday and possibly Saturday night isn't usual, she said.

"It's a very rare occurrence, especially because last night it was really visible," Fruscione said.

That's because the Earth's magnetic activity was at a nine, the highest the index goes, coupled with the Sun being at an active peak, causing eruptions. She added the colors cannot be predicted either as it depends on how the solar energetic particles interact with oxygen and nitrogen atoms. Oxygen appears green, while nitrogen appears purple, blue or pink, she said.

"It just depends on which atoms in the atmosphere this particle interact with," Fruscione said.

She declined to predict how strong Saturday's aurora could be as it's not in her expertise, but said people make predictions all the time about space weather not just for the northern lights, but to ensure communications, space stations, astronauts and other matter in space doesn't get majorly disrupted.

Down on Earth, however, the activity is harmless to humans.

"It's completely harmless because the particles do not don't do not reach us," Fruscione said. "The reason why we see the colors is that the particle interacts with the atoms and they make these beautiful colors and that's it."

For Saturday, and any other day where chatter about the aurora borealis is high, Fruscione encouraged people to download an aurora forecasting app to their phones so they can see the colorful skies.

What are the northern lights?

The northern lights materialize when energized particles from the sun reach Earth's upper atmosphere at speeds of up to 45 million mph,  according to Space.com . Earth's magnetic field redirects the particles toward the poles through a process that produces a stunning display of rays, spirals and flickers that has fascinated humans for millennia.

Contributing: Eric Lagatta and Dinah Voyles Pulver , USA TODAY ; Tanya Wildt, Detroit Free Press ; Alex Groth, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ; Contributing: Bebe Hodges, Cincinnati Enquirer ; Contributing: Steve Howe, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle; Rockland/Westchester Journal News ; Alexandria Burris, Indianapolis Star

Ahjané Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at USA TODAY. Ahjané covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, health, lottery and public policy stories. Email her at  [email protected] . Follow her on  Instagram ,  Threads  and  X (Twitter)

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The huge solar storm is keeping power grid and satellite operators on edge

Geoff Brumfiel

Willem Marx

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of solar flares early Saturday afternoon. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm. Solar Dynamics Observatory hide caption

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of solar flares early Saturday afternoon. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm.

Planet Earth is getting rocked by the biggest solar storm in decades – and the potential effects have those people in charge of power grids, communications systems and satellites on edge.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there have been measurable effects and impacts from the geomagnetic storm that has been visible as aurora across vast swathes of the Northern Hemisphere. So far though, NOAA has seen no reports of major damage.

The Picture Show

Photos: see the northern lights from rare, solar storm.

There has been some degradation and loss to communication systems that rely on high-frequency radio waves, NOAA told NPR, as well as some preliminary indications of irregularities in power systems.

"Simply put, the power grid operators have been busy since yesterday working to keep proper, regulated current flowing without disruption," said Shawn Dahl, service coordinator for the Boulder, Co.-based Space Weather Prediction Center at NOAA.

NOAA Issues First Severe Geomagnetic Storm Watch Since 2005

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"Satellite operators are also busy monitoring spacecraft health due to the S1-S2 storm taking place along with the severe-extreme geomagnetic storm that continues even now," Dahl added, saying some GPS systems have struggled to lock locations and offered incorrect positions.

NOAA's GOES-16 satellite captured a flare erupting occurred around 2 p.m. EDT on May 9, 2024.

As NOAA had warned late Friday, the Earth has been experiencing a G5, or "Extreme," geomagnetic storm . It's the first G5 storm to hit the planet since 2003, when a similar event temporarily knocked out power in part of Sweden and damaged electrical transformers in South Africa.

The NOAA center predicted that this current storm could induce auroras visible as far south as Northern California and Alabama.

Extreme (G5) geomagnetic conditions have been observed! pic.twitter.com/qLsC8GbWus — NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (@NWSSWPC) May 10, 2024

Around the world on social media, posters put up photos of bright auroras visible in Russia , Scandinavia , the United Kingdom and continental Europe . Some reported seeing the aurora as far south as Mallorca, Spain .

The source of the solar storm is a cluster of sunspots on the sun's surface that is 17 times the diameter of the Earth. The spots are filled with tangled magnetic fields that can act as slingshots, throwing huge quantities of charged particles towards our planet. These events, known as coronal mass ejections, become more common during the peak of the Sun's 11-year solar cycle.

A powerful solar storm is bringing northern lights to unusual places

Usually, they miss the Earth, but this time, NOAA says several have headed directly toward our planet, and the agency predicted that several waves of flares will continue to slam into the Earth over the next few days.

While the storm has proven to be large, predicting the effects from such incidents can be difficult, Dahl said.

Shocking problems

The most disruptive solar storm ever recorded came in 1859. Known as the "Carrington Event," it generated shimmering auroras that were visible as far south as Mexico and Hawaii. It also fried telegraph systems throughout Europe and North America.

Stronger activity on the sun could bring more displays of the northern lights in 2024

While this geomagnetic storm will not be as strong, the world has grown more reliant on electronics and electrical systems. Depending on the orientation of the storm's magnetic field, it could induce unexpected electrical currents in long-distance power lines — those currents could cause safety systems to flip, triggering temporary power outages in some areas.

my cat just experienced the aurora borealis, one of the world's most radiant natural phenomena... and she doesn't care pic.twitter.com/Ee74FpWHFm — PJ (@kickthepj) May 10, 2024

The storm is also likely to disrupt the ionosphere, a section of Earth's atmosphere filled with charged particles. Some long-distance radio transmissions use the ionosphere to "bounce" signals around the globe, and those signals will likely be disrupted. The particles may also refract and otherwise scramble signals from the global positioning system, according to Rob Steenburgh, a space scientist with NOAA. Those effects can linger for a few days after the storm.

Like Dahl, Steenburgh said it's unclear just how bad the disruptions will be. While we are more dependent than ever on GPS, there are also more satellites in orbit. Moreover, the anomalies from the storm are constantly shifting through the ionosphere like ripples in a pool. "Outages, with any luck, should not be prolonged," Steenburgh said.

What Causes The Northern Lights? Scientists Finally Know For Sure

The radiation from the storm could have other undesirable effects. At high altitudes, it could damage satellites, while at low altitudes, it's likely to increase atmospheric drag, causing some satellites to sink toward the Earth.

The changes to orbits wreak havoc, warns Tuija Pulkkinen, chair of the department of climate and space sciences at the University of Michigan. Since the last solar maximum, companies such as SpaceX have launched thousands of satellites into low Earth orbit. Those satellites will now see their orbits unexpectedly changed.

"There's a lot of companies that haven't seen these kind of space weather effects before," she says.

The International Space Station lies within Earth's magnetosphere, so its astronauts should be mostly protected, Steenburgh says.

In a statement, NASA said that astronauts would not take additional measures to protect themselves. "NASA completed a thorough analysis of recent space weather activity and determined it posed no risk to the crew aboard the International Space Station and no additional precautionary measures are needed," the agency said late Friday.

People visit St Mary's lighthouse in Whitley Bay to see the aurora borealis on Friday in Whitley Bay, England. Ian Forsyth/Getty Images hide caption

People visit St Mary's lighthouse in Whitley Bay to see the aurora borealis on Friday in Whitley Bay, England.

While this storm will undoubtedly keep satellite operators and utilities busy over the next few days, individuals don't really need to do much to get ready.

"As far as what the general public should be doing, hopefully they're not having to do anything," Dahl said. "Weather permitting, they may be visible again tonight." He advised that the largest problem could be a brief blackout, so keeping some flashlights and a radio handy might prove helpful.

I took these photos near Ranfurly in Central Otago, New Zealand. Anyone can use them please spread far and wide. :-) https://t.co/NUWpLiqY2S — Dr Andrew Dickson reform/ACC (@AndrewDickson13) May 10, 2024

And don't forget to go outside and look up, adds Steenburgh. This event's aurora is visible much further south than usual.

A faint aurora can be detected by a modern cell phone camera, he adds, so even if you can't see it with your eyes, try taking a photo of the sky.

The aurora "is really the gift from space weather," he says.

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The latest on the massive solar storm

By Angela Fritz, Elise Hammond and Chris Lau, CNN

Incredible lighthouse picture from Maine

From CNN's Chris Lau

Among a flurry of surreal images capturing the dazzling auroras is one taken by Benjamin Williamson of a lighthouse in Portland, Maine.

"It's one of the most incredible things I've ever seen, the awe and wonder," Williamson told CNN.

He said he used a long-exposure technique to snap the shot, but did not edit it.

Watch the full interview with Williamson here .

Things could be about to ramp up

If you still haven't seen the aurora, hold on for another 30 minutes to an hour, according to CNN meteorologist Chad Myers.

The next wave of coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, which cause the aurora, is about to arrive, he said.

"Just wait a minute because things are going to start to ramp up here," he said, adding that the increase could arrive "anytime now." "When it comes, get outside, get ready, put your coat on."

For those who are too busy to witness the phenomenon tonight, Myers said the aurora is expected to last three nights.

Why does the aurora last for a weekend?

By CNN's Chris Lau

Generally, it takes just eight minutes for light to travel 93 million miles to the Earth from the sun, but astrophysicist Janna Levin said the energized particles causing the current wave of aurora travel a lot slower, causing the phenomenon to last for the weekend.

"Some of these mass ejections are trillions of kilograms," she said. "They're slower. So they're taking longer, but still hours, maybe tens of hours."

Here's how the solar storm looks in the South and on the East Coast

The aurora was visible across the East Coast and in the South Friday.

Here's how it looked in Chester, South Carolina.

Down in Florida, waves of color swam through the sky.

Up north in New Jersey, a purple-ish haze could be seen in the sky.

Will solar storms get more intense and risky in the future?

The answer is probably not in the short term, according to astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi.

He said scientists study what is constantly happening on the surface of the sun and have found a pattern.

“Geological data shows us that in the past the sun was way more active than it is today. It has cycles where it goes very quiet ... and you have events that show that the solar activity was much, much greater,” he told CNN. “So there's no evidence that we're going to see those big maxima this cycle." 

But the astrophysicist also spoke of a caveat - the limitations of modern science.

“Even though it's predictable in the short term, we still don't quite understand what creates the magnetic fields in the sun,” he said, adding: “That's why NASA has so many satellites looking at the sun.”

In Pictures: Auroras light the sky during rare solar storm

From CNN Digital's Photo Team

A series of solar flares and coronal mass ejections from the sun are creating dazzling auroras across the globe .

The rare solar storm may also disrupt communications. The last time a solar storm of this magnitude reached Earth was in October 2003, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center.

See more photos of the aurora from tonight.

Behind dazzling aurora could lie “real danger,” Bill Nye the Science Guy says

The massive solar storm could present “a real danger,” especially with the modern world relying so much on electricity, according to Bill Nye the Science Guy , a science educator and engineer.

Scientists are warning an increase in solar flares and coronal mass ejections from the sun have the potential to disrupt communication on Earth into the weekend. Solar flares can affect communications and GPS almost immediately because they disrupt Earth’s ionosphere, or part of the upper atmosphere. Energetic particles released by the sun can also disrupt electronics on spacecraft and affect astronauts without proper protection within 20 minutes to several hours.

In comparison to tonight's event, Nye drew comparisons with another incident in 1859, known as the Carrington Event, when telegraph communications were severely affected.

“The other thing, everybody, that is a real danger to our technological society, different from 1859, is how much we depend on electricity and our electronics and so on,” Nye said. "None of us really in the developed world could go very long without electricity."

He noted that there are systems in place to minimize the impact, but “stuff might go wrong,” stressing that not all transformers are equipped to withstand such a solar event.

“It depends on the strength of the event and it depends on how much of our infrastructures are prepared for this the sort of thing,” he said.

Bill Nye breaks down significance of the solar storm | CNN

This post has been updated with more details on solar flares' impact on electronics.

Here's where clouds will block the view of the northern lights in the US

From CNN's Angela Fritz

After an incredibly stormy week, most of the Lower 48 has clear skies to see the northern lights. But there are some areas where clouds and rainy weather are spoiling the view.

A deck of clouds is blocking the sky in the Northeast, from parts of Virginia into Maine, as an area of low pressure spins off the East Coast.

In the Midwest, the aurora will be hard to see through thick clouds in parts of Wisconsin, Michigan — including the Upper Peninsula — and Illinois.

A stripe of clouds is tracking across Texas, including Dallas-Forth Worth, and into Louisiana.

And in the Southwest, patchy clouds across the the Four Corners region could make the northern lights difficult to spot.

Aurora seen at least as far south as Georgia

Barely visible to the naked eye, the aurora can be seen in Atlanta in the 10 p.m. ET hour. 

It is easier to see through photographs using a long exposure. The photos below, taken by CNN's Eric Zerkel and Emily Smith, used 3- and 10-second exposures.

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