2008 is forecast to be a quiet year for magnetic storms but around 20 will still hit Vietnam, said a senior scientist at the Institute of Geophysics.
Dr. Ha Duyen Chau, Deputy Director of the Institute of Geophysics, said the cycle of magnetic storms is 11 years. 2001 was the year of the greatest storms so 2011-2012 will be when storms are next at their strongest. “At that time around 40-50 magnetic storms will hit Vietnam a year, including very strong ones,” he said.
He said so far this year several magnetic storms have come but they were weak so didn’t affect Vietnam.
“Magnetic storms can be foreseen but Vietnam can’t observe them. Vietnam only uses data of other countries and it can record magnetic storms when they come,” the scientist added.
The strongest magnetic storm recorded in Vietnam is one in 1989. This storm coincided with a storm in Quebec (Canada), which broke the whole 550KV power transmission network of Canada, causing losses of billions of USD.
In Hanoi, the most powerful magnetic storm was recorded in 2001.
Chau said magnetic storms can affect people’s health, especially the hearts and the nervous systems of sensitive people, high voltage power transmission lines and oil and gas pipes as well as satellites.
Statistics of the Institute of Geophysics show that 1989 saw the highest number of magnetic storms with 44, and there were 40 in 2000, 27 in 2004, and 15 in 2006.
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