Solar storms can wreak havoc on Earth, but if we can predict them, vital infrastructure could be saved
JUST before noon on 1 September 1859, an English solar astronomer named Richard Carrington witnessed the biggest solar flare ever recorded. About 18 hours later, an intense magnetic storm hit Earth. Currents induced in telegraph wires in Europe and North America sparked fires.
If the 1859 event were to occur today, it could devastate our modern technological infrastructure. So researchers are now turning to automated image-processing and artificial intelligence to better forecast the sun's behaviour and give us time to prepare for a solar onslaught.
Over the past two decades, several solar flares and magnetic storms of varying intensity have hit Earth. Solar flares are surges of X-rays, gamma rays and extreme ultraviolet radiation, and they can damage electric grids, fry satellite electronics and endanger astronauts in space. Even passengers and pilots on aircraft flying over the poles are at risk. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which cause magnetic storms, can strike even closer to home (see "Shock wave blackout").
Shock wave blackout
Solar flares are not the only danger from the sun. They are often accompanied by eruptions of the sun's plasma, known as coronal mass ejections. CMEs, which can take a few days to reach Earth
, are magnetic shock waves that can disrupt Earth's magnetic field and induce currents in electricity transmission lines and oil pipelines, causing blackouts and fires. In March 1989, a CME-induced magnetic storm took out Hydro-Quebec's electricity grid, causing major power outages in Canada. "Companies didn't want to believe that [the cause] could be something as far away as the sun," says Piet Martens of Montana State University in Bozeman. "It took quite a while to convince them." for more please see this link http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228424.800-ai-to-predict-suns-next-attack-on-earth.html
, are magnetic shock waves that can disrupt Earth's magnetic field and induce currents in electricity transmission lines and oil pipelines, causing blackouts and fires. In March 1989, a CME-induced magnetic storm took out Hydro-Quebec's electricity grid, causing major power outages in Canada. "Companies didn't want to believe that [the cause] could be something as far away as the sun," says Piet Martens of Montana State University in Bozeman. "It took quite a while to convince them." for more please see this link http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228424.800-ai-to-predict-suns-next-attack-on-earth.html
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