- 4494
- SOLAR STORMS
- heading our way? -
More solar storms could be heading our way, June 6, 2024. Auroras may be pretty, but the solar storms
that cause them can cause serious havoc on Earth.
------------------------------------- 4494
- SOLAR STORMS
- heading our way?
-
- Tourists normally have to pay big money and
brave cold climates for a chance to see an aurora, but on May 10, 2024, many
people around the world simply had to look up to see these colorful displays
dance across the sky.
-
- Usually banished to the poles of Earth, the
auroras strayed as far as Mexico, southern Europe and South Africa on the
evening of May 10, delighting skygazers and filling social media with images of
exuberant pinks, greens and purples.
-
- But for those charged with protecting Earth
from powerful solar storms such as the one that caused the auroras, a threat
lurks beneath the stunning colors. We
need to understand that behind this beauty, there is danger.
-
- Potential impacts of solar storms are the
taking out power grids and satellites, or exposing astronauts to dangerous
levels of radiation.
-
- The latest auroras were caused by the most
powerful geomagnetic storm since the "Halloween Storms" of October
2003, which sparked blackouts in Sweden and damaged power infrastructure in
South Africa.
-
- There were reports that some self-driving
farm tractors in the United States stopped in their tracks when their GPS
guidance systems went out due to the storm.
-
- Massive explosions on the surface of the
Sun shoot out plasma, radiation and even magnetic fields at incredibly fast
speeds born on the solar wind. These
strange effects are caused by massive explosions on the surface of the sun that
shoot out plasma, radiation and even magnetic fields at incredibly fast speeds
born on the solar wind.
-
- The recent activity has come from a sunspot
cluster 17 times the size of Earth which has continued raging over the
week. It blasted out the strongest
solar flare seen in years.
-
- The sunspot has been turning towards the
edge of the sun's disk, so activity is expected to die down in the short term
as its outbursts aim away from our planet.
But in roughly two weeks the sunspot will swing back around, again
turning its gaze towards Earth.
-
- It is difficult to predict how violent these
sunspots could be, or whether they could spark further auroras. But solar activity is only just approaching
the peak of its roughly 11-year cycle, so the odds of another major storm are
highest "between now and the end of next year".
-
- Geomagnetic storms such as the recent one
create a magnetic charge of voltage and current, "essentially
overloading" things like satellites and power grids. The most famous example came in 1859 during
the worst solar storm in recorded history, called the “Carrington Event”.
-
- As well as stunning auroras, the storm
caused sparks to fly off of telegraph stations. The charge that originated from
the sun was so strong that some telegraphs worked without being plugged into a
power source.
-
- So what would happen if such a powerful
geomagnetic storm struck Earth again?
Most countries have improved their power grids, which should prevent
prolonged outages like those that hit Sweden in 2003 or Canada in 1989.
-
- Still suggested is that people have an
emergency kit in case electricity is knocked out for a day or two. Fresh water
might also help in case filtration plants go offline.
-
- Astronauts are particularly at risk from
radiation during extreme solar activity. Those on the International Space
Station usually take the best shelter they can when a bad storm is expected.
Bettwy said a massive solar
storm could expose astronauts to an "unhealthy dose" of radiation,
but he did not think it would be lethal.
Emphasizing radiation can also potentially "get through the fuselage"
of planes flying near the north pole.
-
- Airlines sometimes change routes during
extreme solar storms to avoid this happening.
-
- Several upcoming space missions are
expected to improve forecasting of the sun's intense and unpredictable weather,
aiming to give Earth more time to prepare.
-
-
June 2, 2024 SOLAR
STORMS - heading our way? 4494
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--------------------- --- Friday, June 7, 2024
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