Ion storms wreak havoc on all ship systems, causing damage to ships just as if they had been hit by enemy fire. The stronger the storm, the more damage a ship will suffer while it remains within that sector. Each ion storm is rated with a number that indicates the amount of damage per turn that all ships in that sector will suffer. Note that there is no upper limit on this rating, and even the heartiest ship may find itself amid a storm that can destroy it in one turn. In addition to inflicting damage ion storms act as nebulae for purposes of interfering with ship scanners.
 
Like nebulae and wormnet portals, ion storms drift throughout the galaxy, either at random or according to deterministic patterns. Two storms that drift into the same sector add their storm ratings together for purposes of applying damage to ships within the overlapping storms.
 
Finally, ion storms can fluctuate in strength from turn to turn, yielding a corresponding change in the amount of damage they inflict.  Like drift patterns, storms fluctuate either either randomly or according to a set pattern.  Thus what may look like a small storm from afar can grow into an inferno by the time your ship arrives.