A large solar storm could knock out the power grid and the internet

[Somerville]

No biggie - right? We can all live without the internet, probably be better for our kids if they weren't staring at a screen 90% of their waking hours. Oh, it might mess with the production of a few items but no biggie - right?

A large solar storm could knock out the power grid and the internet
On Sept. 1 and 2, 1859, telegraph systems around the world failed catastrophically. The operators of the telegraphs reported receiving electrical shocks, telegraph paper catching fire, and being able to operate equipment with batteries disconnected. During the evenings, the aurora borealis, more commonly known as the northern lights, could be seen as far south as Colombia. Typically, these lights are only visible at higher latitudes, in northern Canada, Scandinavia and Siberia.

What the world experienced that day, now known as the Carrington Event, was a massive geomagnetic storm. These storms occur when a large bubble of superheated gas called plasma is ejected from the surface of the sun and hits the Earth. This bubble is known as a coronal mass ejection.

The plasma of a coronal mass ejection consists of a cloud of protons and electrons, which are electrically charged particles. When these particles reach the Earth, they interact with the magnetic field that surrounds the planet. This interaction causes the magnetic field to distort and weaken, which in turn leads to the strange behavior of the aurora borealis and other natural phenomena.
[. . .]
Geomagnetic storms have been recorded since the early 19th century, and scientific data from Antarctic ice core samples has shown evidence of an even more massive geomagnetic storm that occurred around A.D. 774, now known as the Miyake Event. That solar flare produced the largest and fastest rise in carbon-14 ever recorded.
[. . .]
It is only a matter of time before the Earth is hit by another geomagnetic storm. A Carrington Event-size storm would be extremely damaging to the electrical and communication systems worldwide with outages lasting into the weeks. If the storm is the size of the Miyake Event, the results would be catastrophic for the world with potential outages lasting months if not longer. Even with space weather warnings from NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, the world would have only a few minutes to a few hours notice.

 

[Lloyd Christmas]

Everything requires internet and power to work, so that would be catastrophic. Talk about supply chain issues. a Solar flare destroying electronics would be apocalyptic

 

[bubbabgone]

No biggie - right? We can all live without the internet, probably be better for our kids if they weren't staring at a screen 90% of their waking hours. Oh, it might mess with the production of a few items but no biggie - right?

You mean it's not an Anthropogenic Solar Storm?

 

[Somerville]

You mean it's not an Anthropogenic Solar Storm?

At this stage of human development, there is no ability to affect the acts of the star our planet orbits.

 

[bubbabgone]

At this stage of human development, there is no ability to affect the acts of the star our planet orbits.

Yeah I know. You can add climate to the things we can't control. But solar winds can and do.

 

[HIP56948]

The good news is that they last from a few minutes to a few hours, but they can affect sensitive instruments for a day or two IF
the manufacturer didn't put certain circuits in the instrument. IE> Cheap-ass products. Most modern power grids have their act together, regarding those types of storms.

 

[Loulit01]

Pretty soon the Anarchists' Handbook will include instructions on how to create an electromagnetic pulse. Fun times ahead.

 

[soylentgreen]

We can survive without the internet and electricity.

And just a question, does anyone know how these things work?

 

[Schism]

Maybe we can sign a pact with Europe to stop the solar storms, enact a tax, declare corporations "solar storm friendly", pit people against one another, mandate closures, force people to stay home in the dark while politicians party.

If you will vote for democrats in 2022, they will show you their plan to stop the racist conservative solar flares that disproportionately effect minorities and vulnerable communities.

Stimulus is authorized for everyone but white cis-genders.

 

[Somerville]

Maybe we can sign a pact with Europe to stop the solar storms, enact a tax, declare corporations "solar storm friendly", pit people against one another, mandate closures, force people to stay home in the dark while politicians party.

If you will vote for democrats in 2022, they will show you their plan to stop the racist conservative solar flares that disproportionately effect minorities and vulnerable communities.

Stimulus is authorized for everyone but white cis-genders.

Paranoia strikes deep. Into some minds it does creep.

 

[Loulit01]

Maybe we can sign a pact with Europe to stop the solar storms, enact a tax, declare corporations "solar storm friendly", pit people against one another, mandate closures, force people to stay home in the dark while politicians party.

If you will vote for democrats in 2022, they will show you their plan to stop the racist conservative solar flares that disproportionately effect minorities and vulnerable communities.

Stimulus is authorized for everyone but white cis-genders.

Listen carefully.

 

[Rexedgar]

Pretty soon the Anarchists' Handbook will include instructions on how to create an electromagnetic pulse. Fun times ahead.

I thought it was The Anarchist’s Cookbook?

I had a copy in the mid 1970s.

 

[Rexedgar]

When we went away from pencils, you knew it wasn’t going to be good.

 

[Loulit01]

I thought it was The Anarchist’s Cookbook?

I had a copy in the mid 1970s.

You've had a copy since the 70s and you're playing grammar police? Some anarchist you are. BTW mid-1970s is hyphenated.

 

[Rexedgar]

You've had a copy since the 70s and you're playing grammar police? Some anarchist you are. BTW mid-1970s is hyphenated.

Mis-labeling is also hyphenated. What’s grammar got to do with it?


Had one is past tense…….

 

[Napoleon]

We can survive without the internet and electricity.

Most Americans would be dead in a matter of months without electricity.

 

[The Mark]

We can survive without the internet and electricity.

And just a question, does anyone know how these things work?

Poorly, compared to ballpoint pens, so far as I know.

But easier to manufacture.

 

[Deuce]

You mean it's not an Anthropogenic Solar Storm?

No, why would you think that?

 

[Napoleon]

This map represents the immediate concern:



Each of these pins is a nuclear power plant. There are 104 of them and 93 have backup systems which can operate the emergency cooling systems for up to 4 hours without power. The rest can operate for up to 8 hours. After that, meltdown is imminent. So, you can immediately write off everything and everyone in half of the country because it’s going to be a radioactive wasteland.

If you manage to survive this then your next concern is potable water. Municipal water relies on electric pumps. No electricity no pumps. No pumps no water distribution. Your taps become decoration. There’s also no refrigeration so you’re going to need to stock up on nonperishable food.

Problem is that, without electricity, you also have no access to money. So you’re going to have to join the hordes in looting your local grocery store. Of course, there are only so many bottles of water and cans of beans to go around.

You get the picture.

 

[Checkerboard Strangler]

Nuclear hardening is a key part of EVERY mission critical military and civilian system, communications, power, weapons, etc.
No, that does not help the millions of civilian end users but it does protect and preserve the core systems.

It is indeed possible to implement some forms of EMP protection in your home.
That starts at the simplest step --- surge protection and power conditioning.
That's only one of what may be described as the four pillars of EMP hardening

Surge protection
Filtering
Grounding
Shielding

 

[soylentgreen]

Poorly, compared to ballpoint pens, so far as I know.

But easier to manufacture.

If there is no electricity then making ball point pens might be a trick.

 

[bubbabgone]

No, why would you think that?

If you believe AGW don't you have to believe anthropogenic control of the influences on climate? e.g. Activities like solar storms

 

[PoS]

Hmm, I was just doing research on this very subject too...

But really, its no biggie: NASA has an early warning system in place. The Space Weather Prediction Center in Colorado can give out an advance warning in 30 min. Solar storms happen in an 11 year cycle, so its somewhat predictable. Once the warning has been sent, power grids may be hardened or just shut down before the storm hits to mitigate any electronic damage.

 

[code1211]

No biggie - right? We can all live without the internet, probably be better for our kids if they weren't staring at a screen 90% of their waking hours. Oh, it might mess with the production of a few items but no biggie - right?

This is an interesting topic.

If the huge solar flare hits us, will the "Dark Side" of the Earth escape the damages?

Will a solar flare capable of this sort of damage last for a span of minutes, hours, days or weeks?

 

[Napoleon]

This is an interesting topic.

If the huge solar flare hits us, will the "Dark Side" of the Earth escape the damages?

Will a solar flare capable of this sort of damage last for a span of minutes, hours, days or weeks?

The solar flare itself passes in seconds. The damage it will cause is civilization-ending and, assuming we ever recover from it, the process of recovery will take many years.