This product shows the 3-hourly nowcast Kp index of global geomagnetic activity during the present UTC day as a bar plot. The height of the bar(s) corresponds to the index value (o to 9) and the colour represents the geomagnetic activity level (low - green (Kp < 3.3), intermediate - yellow (3 < Kp < 6.3), high - red (Kp> 6)). A smaller version of this plot is given for the preceding 6 days. The nowcast Kp values are calculated at GFZ from near real-time geomagnetic observatory data provided by the contributing observatories. Nowcast values of Kp are typically made available at the end of the measurement interval.

Kp is related to satellite charging as it relates to the injection of low-energy plasma into the magnetosphere. Higher values of Kp are correlated with higher levels of low-energy electrons at GEO orbit and consequently higher occurrence of surface-charging anomalies.