Slashdot Mirror
Is a 'Katrina-Like' Space Storm Brewing?
pilsner.urquell writes "A newly released NASA report warns that the world has forgotten the power of the sun, creating a technological society susceptible like never before to large infrastructure damage from solar storms.
According to the report, the world has grown so dependent on modern technologies without respect of what the sun can and has done, that it's risking major communications, finance, transportation, government and even emergency services disruptions."
Space Carbon Credits are the answer. Make the check out to me.
"... risking major ... finance, ... disruptions."
who needs the sun for that?
"Space Katrina" sounds rather dramatic, but wouldn't the atmosphere lessen the damage? Granted, it's still a valid concern that should be considered, but TFA seems like it's a bit more "doomsday" and a little less "this could happen".
I guess there's only one thing to do - Destroy the sun!
A study funded by NASA has flagged up yet another terrible hazard for those no longer able to get excited about nuclear war, global pandemics, terrorism, climate change, economic meltdown and asteroid strike.
I for one welcome our weekly disaster overlords.
Do you D?
spacecraftconfirmsit
Nothing says "you screwed up" like a nice plague!
At the height of the cold war, this was one of the concerns. As I recall the detonation of a nuclear device in space would cause a massive EMF pulse (Electro-Magnetic force Pulse) that could trash electronics. (Yes, one on the ground is obviously much worse, but this would allow a government to "blind" an enemy without collateral damage.)
It seems that with the end of the cold war, and the fact that an EMP can occur naturally, has been forgotten.
Greg P
Quebec knows what they're talking about.
I'm god, but it's a bit of a drag really...
It really, really bugs me. A lot. I know they are only using it to give the impression of a powerful and disastrous storm. It just seems that likening a coronal mass ejection to a "katrina-like" event is as realistic as likening a tornado to that little swirl in your bathtub drain.
Given that (a) the average journey for food items from production to plate is supposedly over 1000 miles in my country, (b) I live in area with few farms, and (c) Space Katrina is going to knock out transportation and probably the electical grid (I have an electric stove and oven), I have to wonder: Can the smoker I got for Christmas be used to bake bread? And what other essentials should I stock up on?
Loose things are easy to lose. You're getting your hair cut. They're going there to see their aunt.
Hahah, yeah, somewhere on a distant world there's an alien Heinlein writing a novel about capturing the meatbags' top space brainboxes
Seriously guys, I figured this out ages ago... -Faraday
Screw cyberpunk, we're switching to steampunk!
Man, New Orleans can't catch a freaking break!
At least he didn't forget. One of the events he mentioned in his writings was the massive corruption of magnetically stored data. I believe it was his 2001 series (2001, 2010, etc...) where he mentioned a devastating solar storm that wiped out a vast majority of Earth's digital records.
Private and semi-private energy companies, like all lnstitutions promoted by competition to cut costs, suffer the malady of products and infrastructure "built by the lowest bidder".
Because of the nature of pure capitalism and even mixed economies, it is against the interests of any individual actor to create a more robust electronic infrastructure.
This is a role for the dreaded "R" word..ok i'll say it.. RRRegulation.
This is why i hope a solar storm like the one this article fear-mongers about happens.
When it does, various electronic infrastructure companies (power, telecom, etc) will happily welcome a law which sets a minimum level of EMP hardening and other standards.
It's important to note that, despite raising their costs a bit, it won't matter to them so long as their competition suffers the same way.
The cost will likely be passed on to the consumer, but "main street" will also be happy to pay an extra 3 bucks on a few bills knowing region-wide blackouts of power, phone, and internet will no longer be common, especially with a catastrophic failure fresh in their minds.
VLC FOR MAC IS DYING! IF YOU DEVELOP, PLEASE SAVE IT!!
"George Bush doesn't care about BlackBerries."
The world has become so covered by interconnecting copper wire, it has become a massive Faraday cage and is impervious to such threat.
One of our competitors trademarked the term "hypothesis". From now on, we will call them "boneheaded ideas".
Right. If people had lower taxes, the first thing they'd think of to spend the money on would be EMP-resistant electronics.
They would forgo extra vacations, faster cars, Jacuzzis, expensive Champagne and plastic surgery, so that they could upgrade to a rad-hardened TV set. They would show off their Faraday-enclosed gear at parties to impress their friends.
I'm 100% confident that's what everyone would do, and solar storms would be no longer be a risk to anyone.
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!
Look where all this talking got us, baby.
In answer to the ridiculous summary:
No, a "Katrina-like" space storm is not brewing, because for a storm to remotely resemble an Atlantic Hurricane, it would need to occur inside of a frikkin' atmosphere.
Bad journalism should be painful to the perpetrator.
In Capitalist America, bank robs you!
According the report, the world has grown so dependent on modern technologies without respect of what the sun can and has done, that it's risking major communications, finance, transportation, government and even emergency services disruptions
That's why I keep a loaded AK by my home servers and my passport is right beside my 45.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
...in the World of Warcraft forums when this happens. I predict threats of cancellation for inadequate solar-storm protection and demands for a punch-card character-backup system.
:wq
But seriously folkes.. if all the lights went out tomorrow, what shape would you be in..?
Cthulhu Saves -- in case He's hungry later.
It better hurry! Only 8 more days to blame it on Bush! :p
I know, I know...troll / flaimbait but not funny. *sigh*
> Most of the long distance shit uses fiberoptics...
Aren't the repeaters powered by wire run in the cable? If so, and if the runs are long enough, the magnetic storms will zap them.
> ...and a lot of the short distance stuff is underground...
Makes no difference. The problem is currents induced in long cables when the Earth's magnetic field wiggles around as it interacts with solar storms.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
We must destroy the sun immediately to avoid these disasters (it will also correct global warming).
The Amish manage to live without electricity, perhaps we should learn how to live without it ourselves for a few weeks. That skill might come in useful in the future.
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
I lived through Hurricane Ike and have several relatives who lived through Hurricane Katrina. We went 14 days without electricity and I came really close to losing my mind. Two things I learned: 1. the worst part of not having electricity is not the lack of air condition (although that did very much suck). The worst part was the darkness at night. Basic tasks become impossible in the dark. Once the sun sets you go to sleep because there isn't much else to do. Flashlights are great until you forget where you put the flashlight and its pitch black. Cell phones are very useful for illumination until they lose their charge. 2. Ice is the most valuable commodity when you don't have electricity. Stores will eventually restock bottled water, canned food, ect... Ice was the one product that I saw people literally fighting over and huge pallets of it would disappear within minutes of being placed. Another thing - if you are involved in a massive disruption you are pretty much on your own in that you cannot rely on police or ambulance to come to your aid - they are overwhelmed. One good aspect of the whole ordeal was that I met and *gasp* actually talked to many of my neighbors. It was interesting to see that human beings are actually quite good at banding together during times of extreme duress. Of course, once the power was restored we went back to our indifferent ways but at least I know my neighbors now! Finally, contrary to popular belief, there was no mass hysteria, no large group of roving bandits breaking into stores or looting homes. I have a feeling that potential criminals knew they would have been shot on site because people were on edge. This is Texas after all.
I can understand the complexity of shielding every electronics piece in the telecom / power industry, but is there a reason in this day and age that cars are not shielded? You're insulated from the ground by the tires, just strap on some chicken wire and you've got a rolling faraday cage.