Big solar blast may rattle Earth today

[denial]

Source:
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TECH/spa...ast/index.html


(CNN) -- Satellites, pagers, cell phones and electrical grids could be affected Friday afternoon by a powerful stream of energized gas and particles from the sun.

The coronal mass ejection, or CME, is expected to reach Earth about 3 p.m. EDT and its effects could last 12 to 18 hours, according to space weather forecasters.

The solar stream erupted from a cluster of sunspots on the surface of the sun. The giant dark patch, known as sunspot group 10484, has grown to the size of Jupiter in recent days and has migrated across the face of the sun to a position where it now faces Earth.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colorado, warns a number of industries when there is a major release of such hot bursts of solar gases, which usually take two to four days to reach Earth. This particular storm was detected Wednesday.

In the midst of these electromagnetic events, power companies often refrain from peak uploading and downloading of power across the grid. Airlines are also alerted, because some navigation systems may be affected.

Satellites are perhaps most affected by the solar activity.

"Satellites live and breathe in space; they are very vulnerable to solar activity," said Larry Combs, NOAA space weather forecaster. "They affect our banking systems, our TVs and cell phones, all the luxuries of life."

Combs said some operators will put their satellites into a stow, or a sort of "sleep" mode, during the highest impact of the electromagnetic activity.

In the past there have been major outages and interruptions of cell phone and pager service because of electromagnetic interference with orbiting communications satellites.

In 2000, one such solar blast briefly knocked out or created steering problems for numerous orbiting spacecraft.

"Sometimes satellites can be damaged beyond repair," said Combs. But there are hundreds of satellites in space now, most with some sort of backup possible.


Closeup of Jupiter-sized sunspot group 10484

Such geomagnetic storms can disrupt power grids as well. In 1989, one knocked out the main electrical utility in Quebec, Canada, plunging millions into darkness for hours and costing billions of dollars to fix

The CMEs can also have a biological effect on humans, so space forecasters do daily briefings that might affect any crews in space. For example, it would not be a good idea to do a space walk when a solar event is predicted.

Forecasters track the CMEs from the time they leave the sun, and as the material gets closer to Earth they observe spikes in X-rays and electromagnetic emissions.

Solar activity is rated, similar to the system for hurricanes or earthquakes, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 as the most intense. The effects from this storm are expected to be classified 3, or moderate.

The magnetic storms can also produce spectacular nocturnal displays of the Northern lights; NASA's Space Weather Web site is predicting that auroras could be visible as far south as Oregon and Illinois.

Scientists made their first solar storm forecasts in 1964. Since then a variety of instruments, both in space and on the ground, have improved their ability to track the activity.

"But like anything in nature, sometimes they don't act like we expect them to," Combs said.

[taty994945]

looks like it's safe...

[Lux]

eh.



*still here*

[taty994945]

hehe....better luck next time, "solar blast"

[spyretto]

that's unlucky...

[raven ryuu]

I survived Nothing happened over here on Guam.

[Bitty2002]

raven ryuu, hehe, don't you know that all disasters from space only hit the US? (sorry, being highly sarcastic here and making fun of all blockbuster movies with natural disasters.)

[raven ryuu]

How can I forget? Maybe it's because we're US property.

[denial]

Update

Cloud of solar gas strikes our planet
Night skies may light up with auroras
By Marsha Walton
CNN
Friday, October 24, 2003 Posted: 2350 GMT ( 7:50 AM HKT)

(CNN) -- Airline navigation systems and satellite phones are feeling the effects of unexpectedly turbulent solar weather, but no widespread problems were reported Friday when a cloud of superheated gases reached Earth's upper atmosphere

Scientists tracking heightened solar activity in recent days reported some commercial airlines have had to make adjustments to their high-frequency communications, or in some cases switch to alternate satellite systems.

"The first thing we notice in these storms is the X-rays, which travel at the speed of light and can cause radio blackouts," said Larry Combs, a space weather forecaster for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colorado.

Several Himalayan expeditions using satellite phones have also had interference with their communications due to the X-rays, he said.

The X-rays were associated with strong solar disturbances this week, in particular a coronal mass ejection (CME) on Wednesday that sent a stream of energized particles in the direction of our planet.

X-rays reach Earth in a matter of minutes, but CME clouds take anywhere from two to four days. This one began arriving Friday morning, hours earlier than first predicted by space forecasters.

"It's not anything you can see, but it is something our instruments can track," Combs said.

Electrical grids, satellites and pagers and cell phones that rely on orbiting spacecraft can sometimes be affected by CMEs. In 2000, a solar blast briefly knocked out or created steering problems for several orbiting spacecraft.

And in 1989, one zapped the main electrical utility in Quebec, Canada, plunging millions into darkness for hours and costing billions of dollars to fix.

But many electrical systems on Earth and in orbit now have protective systems designed to minimize or prevent damage. And space weather experts like Combs think that this CME storm, classified a moderate 3 on a scale of 1 to 5, will not create major problems.

"After the next 24 hours it may start slowing down," Combs said.


Closeup of Jupiter-sized sunspot group 10484
But the sun is in an unexpected phase of energetic activity and could generate more X-rays, bursts or solar storms in the coming weeks, space weather forecasters caution. Sporadic high-frequency radio blackouts are likely to continue, Combs said.

While not as dangerous as a class 5 storm, what makes this one so unexpected is that it comes three years after the peak of an 11-year cycle of solar activity. Combs likens it to a hurricane on the last day of hurricane season.

And like hurricanes, they constantly change in intensity, making predictions a difficult challenge.

"Like anything in nature, sometimes they don't act like we expect them to," Combs said.

The solar stream erupted from a cluster of sunspots on the surface of the sun. The giant dark patch, known as sunspot group 10484, has grown to the size of Jupiter in recent days and has migrated across the face of the sun to a position where it now faces Earth.

Such magnetic storms can also produce spectacular nocturnal displays of the northern lights; NASA's Space Weather Web site is predicting that nighttime auroras could be visible as far south as Oregon and Illinois.

-- CNN.com's Richard Stenger contributed to this report.