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The 'Perfect Space Storm' Of 1859
Polyploid Pimp writes "Bruce Tsurutani of JPL recently published a paper on the 'perfect space storm' of 1859. Apparently, this solar superstorm was so massive that it knocked out telegraphs across the Northern Hemisphere, and the aurora borealis could be seen as far south as Hawaii, Havana, and Rome. Among other interesting notes, the amount of sunlight produced in the region of this solar flare actually doubled! Although the article does not discuss in detail the effects of a solar storm of this size on our current technologies, we can all imagine (maybe something like Escape from L.A.?)"
Staff and wire reports
Published October 25, 2003 SOLA25
Electric utilities in Minnesota and across the country are preparing for potential disruptions in electric supplies this afternoon, when a strong geomagnetic solar storm is expected to hit Earth.
The storm was expected to be most severe Friday, though experts said they didn't anticipate problems with communication networks.
``This is not a super solar storm,'' said Larry Combs, a space weather forecaster with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Environment Center in Boulder.
So far, the storm has interfered with airline communications and radio communications for teams on Mount Everest, Combs said. But problems were not widespread.
Sun as seen from spaceThe storm, called a ``coronal mass ejection,'' is a mass of solar gas that swept toward Earth at 2 million mph. The usual cycle for such a storm is every 11 years; this one was expected to hit three years ago.
``It is kind of like a snowstorm in June in Colorado,'' Combs said.
Combs said power companies, which are among the center's best customers, have been notified and were taking precautions to avoid voltage problems and blackouts.
Xcel Energy spokesman Paul Adelmann said the company is monitoring the situation, with help from the North American Electric Reliability Council (NAERC).
Our service area is not susceptible to the effects of solar flares in part because of our geology and research done in conjunction with the (University of Minnesota), Adelmann said. Xcel does not anticipate any problems, he said, but will continue to monitor the situation for potential repercussions of any neighboring outages.
Satellites also are at risk during such storms but cell phones aren't likely to be affected unless they rely on satellites, Combs said.
``Satellites are built to live out there, but an accumulation of hits can cause problems,'' he said.
Operators can shut them down and put them in what is called a stow position until storms pass. They may need to be boosted back up to their correct altitudes after the storm.
Much like predicting a hurricane, forecasting the impact of a geomagnetic storm is difficult.
``It could just strike a glancing blow or hit head on,'' Combs said.
Bil MacLeslie, general manager for VISI.com, a Minneapolis-based Internet service provider, said the vast majority of customers will see no ill effects from the storm.
We rely solely on land-based (wired) communications and expect little effect from the storm, but do expect customers to have issues with wireless computer networks, cellular messaging and paging services with content that originates from the Internet, said MacLeslie.
He said customers which use such transmissions may expect to see some degradation in their service.
Concern about the storm was triggered after one of the largest sunspot clusters in years developed over the past three days and produced a coronal mass ejection, similar to a solar flare, at 2 a.m. on Wednesday, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.
Lou Leffler, manager for NAERC's critical infrastructure protection , based in New Jersey, said NOAA upgraded the storm to a K7 late this morning.
The level of intensity is based on a ranking from K1-K9. We normally don't track anything below K5, he said.
NAERC provides updates on such geomagnetic disturbances to utilities throughout the Canada and the continental U.S.
At this level, some utilities, primarily in the northern hemisphere, may have to take action to reduce the amount of loading to the system, said Leffler. That can include reducing transfers, taking equipment offline and using generators to back up equipment.
John Kappenman, division manager for Metatech Corp. in Duluth, has been studying
"It's not how many people I've killed - it's how I get along with the ones that are still alive."