Penny,

Solar storms create space weather. When we describe weather, what components are there? There could be temperature, wind, precipitation, light displays, societal danger. During a solar storm, the temperature of the gas in the area of the flare increases. The Sun always has a wind, we call it the solar wind. When a large flare or coronal mass ejection occurs, the wind speed and the density of particles increases. When there's a hurricane, the wind speed and density of the air increases. During a solar storm, charged particles can "rain down" (precipitation) from the upper atmosphere and cause light displays (aurorae), analogous to lightning. Societal danger is obvious in the case of a hurricane. In the case of solar storms, there is the possibility of electronic damage to satellites that are necessary for GPS, for example. The radiation that results from the storm can be damaging to astronauts and to pilots and crew of airplanes. It is also possible for electric currents to be induced in the ground that could damage transformers of power stations, knocking out power to thousands or millions of people. So, I think solar storms is a pretty good way to describe these events, don't you?

Now here's the definition of space weather:

The conditions on the sun, in space, and in our upper atmosphere that can influence the performance and reliability of space-borne and ground-based technological systems and endanger human life or health.

Thanks for the question!

Mitzi