Sun Storm Forecast: Tiny Chance of Havoc

Katie Toal    
April 12, 2013                                                                                                   
Earth Science/C Even
Mrs. Davies                                                                                                  

Sun Storm Forecast: Tiny Chance of Havoc

Chang, Kenneth. "Sun Storm Forecast: Tiny Chance of Havoc." The New York Times. N.p., 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

In 1859, Earth experienced the effects of a massive solar flare. This storm was the largest recorded geomagnetic storm in history. Billions of tons of both protons and electrons were sent flying toward Earth, where they collided with Earth’s magnetic field. However, this was not all that happened. These particles then became trapped inside of Earth’s magnetic field and gradually produced electrical currents in the ground. In time, those same currents burst out of the earth and into the electrical transmission lines. Because of the heavy amount of particles and electrical currents within these lines, telegraph papers burst into flames, and anyone within a few inches of the wires experienced a severe shock.

Although the occurrence of solar flares is fairly common, in comparison, the likely hood of having another massive solar flare directed at Earth is very rare. However, it is far from impossible and is 100 per cent guaranteed to happen again. This, though, is frightening for many scientists because they realize that if we had a massive solar flare occur today, it would be more than telegraph lines that would feel the effects. In fact, Chang relays that if a storm such as the one in 1859 were to occur today, it would have the potential to blackout entire continents. In addition, satellites above Earth could be disabled, GPS signals would suffer disorienting interference, and transformers could be permanently damaged.

Without a doubt, if a major solar flare were to hit us, it would have major implications for Earth. In fact, the National Research Council believes that some areas may be without power for months and would suffer “chronic shortages for multiple years.” Although we do have people watching for solar flares, we cannot have any way of knowing whether the flare is heading toward Earth until just ten minutes before it actually comes into contact with our magnetic field. Although this sounds tantalizing, electric companies say that they could easily cause a continental-wide blackout to prevent too much electrical damage and that even if power lines were damaged, they could have most people’s power up within a single week. However, opinions on this matter are very controversial. John Kappenman, an engineer who owns Strom Analysis Consultants states that a solar flare today would be comparable to “Sandy magnified by a hundredfold.” Although none know exactly what could happen if a solar flare were to come into contact with the Earth’s magnetic field, the best scientists know that it would be very hard to manage and thus are keeping a watchful eye out for any signs of numerous sun spots, or flashes of white, indicating the beginning of a flare.

I thought that this article was very interesting and informative. I enjoyed this article because it clearly portrayed a thorough knowledge regarding solar flares and also included quotes from many reliable sources, adding to its accurate and informative nature. In addition, although the knowledge presented in this article was at times confusing, Chang made sure to explain each step of the process to make something so complex seem almost simple. Although I really enjoyed this article, I do think it had some weak spots. It stated that a single solar flare could cause mass blackouts as well as “chronic shortages,” but it never explained exactly how this could occur. I think it would have been very interesting to learn how something coming from 1AU away could cause such large-scale damage on Earth. Although some facts were vague, I learned a lot from this article and could only see it being improved by taking away some repetitive facts.