equator

During the peak of the storm, the Sun's activity compressed Earth's magnetic field so strongly that charged particles were able to travel much farther along magnetic field lines toward the equator.

Since 2011, scientists have tracked the recurring appearance of the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt, a massive band of gulfweed that moves from the equator toward the Caribbean during periods of strong easterly winds.

“Here comes a plot twist! The storm leaves them shipwreck’d on an unmapped island, somewhere south of the equator.”

The UK is currently sitting to the south of these winds and is tapping into air originating in the Azores, close to the equator.

Near the equator, though, the pattern flips across a wide area, creating a striking difference between the two zones.