This article was originally published on August 20, 2015.
We all know that major storms can wreak havoc, flooding cities and decimating infrastructure.
But theres an even bigger worry than wind and rain: space weather.
Image: NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center
If a massive solar storm hit us, our technology would be wiped out.
The entire planet could go dark.
If we were hit by an extreme event today, itd be very difficult to respond.
The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft captured this epic solar flare in 2003.Image: ESA / NASA – SOHO
These eruptions occur very rarely, but when they do, theyre an epic sight.
One of the most powerful flares measured with modern instruments took place during a solar maximum in 2003.
We call these active regions, or sunspots.
An X-class flare captured by NASA on March 6th, 2012.Image: NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center
When theyre big and ugly, thats an indication that the magnetic field is changing rapidly.
These types of radiation are powerful enough to rip electrons off of atoms.
Basically, the sky gets zapped with a giant electromagnetic pulse.
Artist’s depiction of the solar wind colliding with Earth’s magnetosphere.Illustration: NASA
But according to Berger, even the biggest flares dont impact humans very much.
Its a huge EM pulse that roils up the ionosphere, causing it to expand out, Berger said.
But the solar flare really doesnt damage technology.
Things stand to get really dark up in here the next time a Carrington-sized storm hits.Image: NASA Earth Observatory
The one exception is radio.
Radio signals between the Earth and orbiting satellites can be blocked when the atmosphere becomes too charged.
Radio communications are sometimes impacted, Berger noted.
A map showing the at-risk transformer capacity by state for a 4800 nT/min geomagnetic field disturbance. Regions with high percentages of at-risk capacity could experience long-duration outages extending for several years.Graphic: J. Keppenman, Metatech Corp
Over the horizon radio becomes difficult.
But its just a temporary difficulty lasting ten minutes to hours at the most.
The only thing we can do is issue an alert when we see one, Berger said.
If youre not an airline operator, you pretty much get to sit this one out.
But dont forget to check out the amazing images over at NASAsSolar Dynamics Observatoryevery now and then.
They bombard the magnetosphere, a protective envelope around Earth created by our magnetic field.
Occasionally, a large pulse of charged particles will hit orbiting satellites and damage their electronics.
Particle radiation is also a big health risk for humans in space.
We do have to worry about energetic particles on the ISS, Gurman said.
But by and large, the effects of solar particle radiation are buffered by the magnetosphere and atmosphere.
Its whats coming next that you and me on the ground need to worry about.
When the Sun flares up, it sometimes shoots a giant cloud of magnetized plasma off into space.
This is called a coronal mass ejection (CME).
Theyre also by far the most dangerous.
They examine images of the Sun, pulled from theSOHOandSTEREOsatellites.
When our observatories see something big, NOAA responds.
Thats when you start to see effects on the power grid.
This generates huge electrical currents in upper atmosphere of Earth, Berger said.
At the time, the damage wasnt too bad.
But a Carrington-sized storm today could spell disaster.
Currents electrified telegraph lines, shocked technicians, set telegraph papers on fire, and caused widespread communications outages.
Modern estimates for the strength of this storm range from Dst = -800 nT to -1750 nT.
Human society is far more reliant on electricity today than it was 156 years ago.
So, what would happen if a Carrington-sized event struck us now?
If this happens, it can lead to massive power outages.
Its hard to overstate just how much this would uproot our lives.
In places with electronically-controlled municipal water supplies like most modern cities toilets and sewage treatment systems would stop working.
Heating and air conditioning would fail.
Perishable food and medication would be lost.
ATMs would be useless.
Gas pumps would go offline.
GPS technology would also be knocked out.
If you dump a bunch of energetic particles into the atmosphere, that effects your GPS.
Which is sobering when you consider the replacement of old aircraft landing technology with GPS.
Some of these effects could last years, and theyd be felt globally.
The entire magnetic field of the Earth is changing, so the entire Earth feels it, said Berger.
What we do know for sure is that the economic toll would be enormous.
Its important to keep in mind that we arent talking about some incredibly far-fetched, Armageddon-style apocalypse situation here.
In fact, in July of 2012, a massive CME ripped through Earths orbit and narrowly missed us.
This is a pressing question that needs answers.
But were trying to change that.
Berger said that they have a national space weather strategy due out in October.
The strategy will outlines what the US needs to do to be better prepared.
He did hint that it would be heavy on the recommendations for power suppliers.
(Currently, power companies respond to large solar storm warnings by re-routing power distribution around transformers.)
In the meanwhile, what can a space weather-conscious Earthling do?
Most of the usual disaster preparedness advice applies.
Build anemergency supply kit.Have a plan for getting in touch with loved ones should the phones fail.
Keep your car tank at least half full of gasoline.
Keep extra batteries on hand, or purchase a solar or hand-crank charger.
Back up your data.
see to it youve got plenty of spare crowbars wait, no, thats the zombie apocalypse.
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