Technology

Solar Storms are disrupting farmer GPS systems during critical planting time

Published

2 years ago

May 12, 2024

Solar Storms are disrupting farmer GPS systems during critical planting time

The solar storms that have been wowing people with the Northern Lights across the United States the last two nights have also been disrupting GPS satellites, crippling some Midwest farmers’ operations, reports 404 Media. The issues have forced many to stop planting just as a crucial planting deadline for corn farmers approaches.

The storms reportedly knocked “some GPS systems” offline temporarily, which messed with the accuracy of “Real-Time Kinematic” (RTK) systems. Tractors from John Deere and other brands use RTK for “centimeter-level positional accuracy” when carrying out farming work like crop-planting or fertilizing, 404 Media writes.

The “extremely compromised” systems caused “drastic shifts in the field and even some heading changes” for those who continued planting during the outages, according to a warning from Kansas and Nebraska John Deere dealer Landmark Implement over the weekend. Landmark said that planted rows won’t be where AutoPath, a tractor guidance system, thinks they are later when it’s time to tend to them, and that it could be difficult or impossible to use it in fields that were planted while GPS systems were compromised.

While the solar storms, which are some of the worst to have hit the Earth in over two decades according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), are expected to subside soon, it comes at a critical time for corn crops. Willie Cade of right-to-repair advocate group Repair.org told 404 Media that May 15th “is a critical date to get corn planted,” calling it “huge” if corn farmers can’t get their crops planted by then.

Organic farmer Tom Schwarz, who was also quoted in the story, said the solar storms halted their operations, and that now the weather forecast threatens to put off planting even further. His farm and others like it use RTK systems to plant crops right up to the edge of the lanes tractors use to drive between them, and if GPS was inaccurate while planting happens, they risk destroying crops later, because human drivers “can’t steer fast enough or well enough” to keep tractors between the rows.

On a broad scale, the farming that’s done today is heavily reliant on high-tech, often heavily automated tractors and other equipment. When they fail, farmers often have no recourse because the entire life cycle of their crops is wrapped up in the tech. That reliance is part of why there’s so much momentum behind right-to-repair laws now, as farmers want to be able to fix their tractors when they break, rather than be beholden to manufacturers for it.

Geomagnetic storms like the ones affecting farmers this weekend are created when plasma and magnetized particles are flung out of the sun in what’s called coronal mass ejections. The NOAA rates them on an increasingly severe scale from G1 to G5. The storm that’s been hitting the Earth the last couple of days has reached G5.

The NOAA says “severe to extreme” solar storms of G4 or higher could occur again today. So far, the storms haven’t led to widespread reports of solar storm-related disruptions, though Starlink has experienced some “degraded performance,” as Reuters writes, while some on Reddit reported issues with flight systems or HAM radio transmissions.

Technology

Use this map to find the data centers in your backyard

Published

6 hours ago

May 14, 2026

Press Room

Use this map to find the data centers in your backyard

When Oregon resident Isabelle Reksopuro heard Google was gobbling up public land to fuel its data centers in her home state, she didn’t initially know what to believe. “There’s a lot of misinformation about data centers,” she said. “Google has denied taking that land.”

Technically, she explains, The Dalles, a city near the Washington state border, sought to reclaim that land, “and Google is just a big, unnamed power user.” The city had in fact asked for ownership of a 150-acre portion of Mount Hood National Forest, claiming it needs access to Mount Hood’s watershed to meet municipal needs as its population — 16,010 as of the 2020 census — grows. But critics, including environmentalists, say the city is trying to secure more water for Google, which has a sprawling data center campus in The Dalles that already consumes about one-third of the city’s water supply.

This controversy made Reksopuro curious about the backlash to data centers being built in other communities. So Reksopuro, a student at the University of Washington who studies the connections between tech and public policy, decided to map it out. Using information collected by Epoch AI and data scraped from legislation on data centers, she built an interactive map tracking AI policy around the world. She designed it to be simple enough for anyone to use. “I wanted it to be something that my younger sisters could play through and explore to understand what are the data centers in the area and what’s actually being done about it,” Reksopuro said. She hoped to shift their opinions that way, “instead of like, through TikTok.”

Four times a day, the map searches for new sources and checks them against the existing database Reksopuro built out. “Once it does that, it will write a new summary, add it to the news feed, and populate it on the sidebar,” she said. “I wanted it to be self-updating, since I’m also a student.”

Reksopuro isn’t against data centers, but she thinks tech giants benefit from a lack of transparency around data center policies. “Right now, it’s this really opaque thing — and all of a sudden, there’s a facility,” she said. “I think that if people knew about data centers beforehand, it would give them leverage. They would be able to negotiate: ask for job training programs, tax revenue, environmental monitoring, things to improve their community.”

Technology

Fox News AI Newsletter: Graduation speaker praises AI, gets instantly booed

Published

6 hours ago

May 14, 2026

Press Room

UCF commencement speaker Gloria Caulfield (University of Central Florida via Storyful)

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Welcome to Fox News’ Artificial Intelligence newsletter with the latest AI technology advancements.

IN TODAY’S NEWSLETTER:

– UCF graduates clobber commencement speaker with boos after she says AI is the ‘next Industrial Revolution’

– OPINION: DIRECTOR KASH PATEL: We brought the FBI out of the past and into the AI age

– OpenAI backs creation of global AI governance body led by the U.S. that would include China as a member

TOUGH CROWD: During a recent commencement ceremony at the University of Central Florida, a speaker was met with loud boos from the graduating class after declaring that artificial intelligence represents the next industrial revolution. Fox News Digital reporting captures this tense cultural moment, illustrating the mixed public sentiment and skepticism surrounding AI’s growing footprint in daily life.

A statue on the campus of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida. (iStock)

BADGE MEETS BYTE: Reflecting on the modernization of national security in a Fox News op-ed, FBI Director Kash Patel explores how the bureau must adapt its strategies to address modern threats and advance beyond the artificial intelligence age.

TECH DIPLOMACY: OpenAI is throwing its support behind the establishment of a new global artificial intelligence governance organization that would be led by the United States while notably including China as a member. Fox News Digital reporting examines the geopolitical dynamics and regulatory implications of this proposed framework as global powers race to set the standards for AI development.

EQUITY ELEVATION: The massive wave of wealth generated by the explosive growth of ChatGPT and the broader AI industry is driving a sudden surge in the San Francisco Bay Area’s luxury real estate market. Fox News Digital reporting breaks down how the influx of new tech capital is reshaping local housing dynamics and fueling a high-end property frenzy.

FBI Director Kash Patel listened as Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke during a press conference at the Department of Justice on April 28, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

STRATEGY RESET: Tech giant Cisco is planning to eliminate thousands of jobs as the company shifts its primary focus to accelerate its artificial intelligence initiatives, a move that comes despite the company beating earnings expectations. Fox News Digital reporting details the corporate restructuring and broader economic trends pushing legacy tech firms to aggressively pivot toward AI.

ROAD HAZARD: Waymo is issuing a sweeping recall of its autonomous vehicle fleet following a concerning incident that highlighted significant safety issues with the self-driving technology. Fox News Digital reporting outlines the specifics of the recall, the nature of the safety flaw, and what this setback means for the future of fully autonomous transportation on public roads.

BOTS IN THE BAY: A newly developed, artificial intelligence-powered robot has been engineered to seamlessly change and balance vehicle tires without human intervention. Fox News Digital reporting showcases this latest innovation, exploring how automation and AI mechanics could soon revolutionize the automotive service and repair industry.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks during the 2026 Infrastructure Summit in Washington, D.C., on March 11, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)

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Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future with Fox News here.

This article was written by Fox News staff.

Technology

Microsoft’s Edge Copilot update uses AI to pull information from across your tabs

Published

18 hours ago

May 14, 2026

Press Room

Microsoft’s Edge Copilot update uses AI to pull information from across your tabs

Microsoft Edge is adding a new feature that will allow its Copilot AI chatbot to gather information from all of your open tabs. When you start a conversation with Copilot, you can ask the chatbot questions about what’s in your tabs, compare the products you’re looking at, summarize your open articles, and more.

In its announcement, Microsoft says you can “select which experiences you want or leave off the ones you don’t.” The company is retiring Copilot Mode as well, which could similarly draw information from your tabs but offered some agentic features, like the ability to book a reservation on your behalf. Microsoft has since folded these agentic capabilities into its “Browse with Copilot” tool.

Several other AI features are coming to Edge, including an AI-powered “Study and Learn” mode that can turn the article you’re looking at into a study session or interactive quiz. There’s a new tool that turns your tabs into AI-powered podcasts as well, similar to what you’d find on NotebookLM, and an AI writing assistant that will pop up when you start entering text on a webpage.

You can also give Copilot permission to access your browsing history to provide more “relevant, high-quality answers,” according to Microsoft. Copilot in Edge on desktop and mobile will come with “long-term memory” as well, which can tailor its responses based on your previous conversations. And, when you open up a new tab, you’ll see a redesigned page that combines chat, search, and web navigation, along with the Journeys feature, which uses AI to organize your browsing history into categories that you can revisit.

Meanwhile, an update to Edge’s mobile app will allow you to share your screen with Copilot and talk through the questions about what you’re seeing. Microsoft says you’ll see “clear visual cues” when Copilot is active, “so you know when it’s taking an action, helping, listening, or viewing.”