Flights rerouted as massive solar storm slams Earth
Solar radiation from a massive sun storm the largest in nearly a decade collided with the Earth's atmosphere, prompting an airline to reroute flights and skywatchers to seek out spectacular light displays. NASA confirmed the coronal mass ejection (CME) began colliding with Earth's magnetic field around 10:00 AM (1500 GMT) Tuesday, adding that the storm was now being considered the largest since October 2003.
US carrier Delta Air Lines said it had adjusted flight routes for transpolar journeys between Asia and the United States to avoid problems caused by the radiation storm. Radiation storms are not harmful to humans, on Earth at least, according to the US space agency. They can, however, affect satellite operations and short wave radio.