Hundreds of whales and dolphins can be washed ashore due to solar storms, according to NASA astrophysicist Antti Pulkkinen. The assumption and future steps to test it are described on the NASA website.
The mass suicides of marine mammals may be related to the fact that they use magnetic fields for navigation, which means they can be affected by magnetic anomalies. Earlier, the main factor was considered to be the sonar signals, knocking cetaceans out of the way, but still this version did not explain the main part of the cases. The gravitational influence of the Moon was also considered as a possible reason.
The researchers suggest that the main reason for the mass suicides of cetaceans is changes in the Earth's magnetic field during solar storms. These changes are so strong that they can destroy electrical appliances, radio communication systems and GPS navigation. Now NASA is starting an investigation to find out if solar storms can actually affect animal behavior.
According to Pulkkinen and his colleagues, the data obtained may be useful for predicting future acts of mass suicide of marine mammals. “This would allow the next landfall to be calculated and prepared to react immediately and save as many animals as possible,” said Katie Moore, spokeswoman for the International Fund for Animal Welfare.