The Great Halloween Storms

20th Anniversary of the Great Halloween Storms

20 years ago, a pair of fast-moving CMEs slammed into Earth, triggering the Great Halloween Storms of 2003. During the 3-day event, auroras descended as far south as Texas and Mexico, while satellite operators temporarily “lost” the majority of low-Earth orbiting satellites. Take a trip down memory lane on today’s edition of Spaceweather.com

Red auroras over Houston, Texas, during the Halloween Storms of 2003. Credit: Christie Ponder