The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently warned that the strongest solar radiation storm in two decades could impact Earth’s atmosphere and disrupt communications and navigation systems. This article details what “space weather” is and how it affects shipping and marine insurance.
The Northern Lights are recognized as one of Earth’s natural wonders and are bright, colorful displays across the Arctic sky caused by solar radiation interacting with Earth’s magnetic field. These displays are beautiful, but if the solar activity that causes them is strong enough, it can interfere with important technology. With NOAA recently warning that the strongest solar radiation storm in 20 years is expected to impact Earth, it’s worth asking how ship owners should prepare and which risks will be covered by insurance.
What is space weather?
The term “space weather” refers to a range of phenomena originating from the Sun, including solar flares, streams of charged particles, and coronal mass ejections. In mild cases, auroras occur only near the poles in space weather. More powerful events can disrupt satellites, navigation systems, radio communications, and power grids.
The risks are well documented. The UK government has warned in its 2025 National Risk Register that harsh space weather could disrupt “critical technology”. Lloyds also identified space weather as a material global risk in its recent systemic risk scenario.
Why is it important in shipping?
History shows the potential impact. In 1859, the Carrington phenomenon, a powerful geomagnetic activity, disrupted telegraph systems across Europe and North America. In 2003, severe space weather disrupted GPS signals, damaged satellites, and caused a complete communications failure in polar regions. It was recently widely reported that in 2022, SpaceX lost 40 of its 49 newly launched satellites due to severe space weather.
Space weather is a significant risk for shipping, which is increasingly reliant on electrical power and satellites to power and guide navigation systems. During severe space weather, changes in the Earth’s atmosphere can affect the movement of satellites in orbit, creating “phantom commands” that can cause them to stop completely. AIS, GNSS, and GPS systems can be fully fixed. In addition, radio frequency and very high frequency communications could effectively experience a “blackout” as radio signals would be prevented from passing through the Earth’s atmosphere. Such disruptions pose risks to both safe passage and effective emergency response.
Although there have been no casualties on ships directly related to space weather, the risks are clear. Sudden loss of satellite or radio communications can lead to serious accidents. This issue is even more pressing for autonomous and highly automated vessels, which rely heavily on uninterrupted satellite signals to operate safely.
Additionally, modern ships are equipped with advanced electronic control and automation systems. Solar storms can cause electrical surges in these systems, which can cause malfunctions, power outages, and even permanent damage.
Impact on port infrastructure
The potential effects of space weather are not limited to ships sailing in the open ocean. Given its ability to impact energy grids and power sources, space weather could similarly damage critical ports and shipping infrastructure. Cranes, automated cargo handling systems and port power grids rely on a stable power grid. Severe solar storms can induce geomagnetic currents on above-ground power lines, leading to power outages and equipment failures, which can halt port operations. In 1989, an extreme power surge caused by space weather caused a nine-hour power outage in Quebec. A transformer at a nuclear power plant further away in New Jersey also burned out in the same weather, costing millions of dollars.
Is the risk covered by marine insurance?
Shipping companies can also take practical steps to reduce risk. As we highlighted in our article on GPS jamming, crews must be trained and ships equipped to operate in the event of a failure of satellite navigation or electronic communications systems. For further details and information, please see the newly published report from the Royal Institute of Shipping.
conclusion
As shipping becomes increasingly dependent on digital technology and satellite systems, space weather is a new risk that deserves more attention. Although severe solar storms are rare, their potential impacts sit alongside other low-probability, high-impact natural disasters.
For ship owners, managers, and insurance companies, especially those operating in high latitudes, understanding space weather and preparing for its impacts has become part of good risk management.
If space weather causes damage to the cargo, it is likely that space weather will fall under one of the Hague-Visby defenses (although this has not been legally tested), and the owner should be able to defend the claim on that basis. P&I coverage for cargo insurance claims, crew insurance claims, contamination, etc. is not impaired by the fact that it is caused by space weather.
Coverage for damage to a vessel’s equipment, hull, or machinery caused by space weather may vary depending on the vessel’s specific insurance. The ITC hull clause, which is designated perils coverage, does not include space weather and will not cover space weather damage unless an additional perils clause is added to convert it to all-perils coverage. The Nordic program covers all hazards and space weather is not listed as an exclusion.
What should shipping companies do?
The good news is that space weather forecasting has improved significantly. Agencies such as NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center and the UK Met Office provide advanced warnings and real-time alerts, as well as traditional weather forecasts. Solar storm warnings are typically sent through NAVAREA messages to alert mariners, as shown in the example below. These help operators prepare for potential disruptions.
Source: Guard; https://www.gard.no/en/insights/solar-storms-at-sea-why-space-weather-matters-for-shipping/