In 2007 NASA launched five satellites to study the magnetosphere, in a mission called Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms, or THEMIS.
Another explanation is that a freak disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere due to solar wind can cause a ship's instruments to go haywire, effecting navigation.
They have the potential to overload power grids, disrupt communication channels, and interact with Earth's own magnetosphere so astronomers pay close attention to the rare CME pointed toward Earth.