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U.S. Satellite Plan Could Knock Out GPS and Radio

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the protect-at-all-cost dept.

Audent writes "Otago University researchers are concerned by U.S. plans to protect satellites from solar storms... "The approach, which is being considered by the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, involves using very low frequency radio waves to flush particles from belts and dump them into the upper atmosphere over either one or several days". The plan could disrupt GPS signals and high frequency radio over the Pacific for up to a week. "The disruptions result from a deluge of dumped charged particles temporarily changing the ionosphere from a "mirror" that bounces high frequency radio waves around the planet to a "sponge" that soaks them up.""

4 of 152 comments (clear)

  1. so what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    Yes and a solar storm could disrupt them forever.

  2. Summary by daveschroeder · · Score: 5, Insightful

    - This is a proposed system; not one that has been approved or even designed

    - The system would protect hundreds of satellites in low earth orbit from solar storms (or high altitude nuclear detonations)

    - Depending on how the system is designed and operated, neither of which have been done yet, it COULD have deleterious effects on certain other communication systems

    - They say GPS could be affected, but they ignore the fact that GPS is critical to the US itself

    - Certainly the international community should consider implications, and nowhere is it stated or shown that the US is ignoring any obligations, considering the fact that the same possible harmful, but temporary, effects would also be felt by the US

  3. Re:I'm sure they've thought of it by Lumpy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    A friend who flies Blackhawks says the worst part of training was then they shut down the GPS receiver and made him navigate on the fly, so to speak.

    wow what a bunch of big babiesw the military pilots are today.

    He cant navigate without GPS, good god.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  4. Very silly article and plan! by Ancient_Hacker · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Somedays I wonder if I've fallen through the looking-glass.
    • A high-altitude nuke blast will scrable the ionosphere pretty good. The one the US tested in 1962 shut down the HF radio bands for many hours. That much is known.
    • Using big conductive hair-nets to discharge the ionization is a blue-sky, well, black-sky speculation.
    • It involves a lot of non-existent hardware and techniques.
    • Among the many unknowns are : how to orbit a many kilowatt 200Kv power source.
    • how to deploy up to 100Km of fishnet stockings.
    • and how to keep these satellites and stockings deployed as they plow through electrostatic and magnetic fields.
    • And oh, it's unclear how much of the ionization will be affected by a pair of ho-net stockings approximately the size of New Jersey.

      So IMHO it's way too early to worry about the existence, magnitude, or net benefit of the side-effects.