Predicting damage from a
Storms on the sun's surface are a regular and dramatic part of solar activity. But extremely big solar storms can disable satellites in Earth orbit and disrupt earthly communications. NOAA has a web site featuring today's space weather.
JB: This is Earth and Sky. Newspapers from September of the year 1859 recorded strange events across planet Earth.
DB: Telegraph wires in Europe and North America shorted out or caught on fire. And the northern lights – colorful lights typically seen in the far north – were seen as far south as Cuba and Rome.
JB: Scientists think the 1859 event was caused by a “solar superstorm” – not an ordinary solar storm – but a much bigger explosion on the surface of the sun releasing hot, fast-moving, electrified gas. Stan Odenwald of Goddard Space Flight Center estimated that a solar superstorm – if it happened today – might affect the nearly 1,000 satellites orbiting Earth right now.
Sten Odenwald: The bottom line seems to be that a superstorm that is about 2 to 3 times more powerful than the 1859 storm would probably cost perhaps up to 70 billion dollars in lost profit to the commercial satellite network. Probably about 80 satellites in total might be disabled . . .
_DB: That could disrupt financial transactions, telephone calls, radio signals, GPS signals, and more. It’s hard to predict solar storms. But if satellite operators expect one, they put satellites into non-critical modes of operation and point sensitive equipment away from the sun. That’s our show.
Our thanks to NASA explore, discover, understand. We’re Block and Byrd for Earth and Sky.
Scientists think that a few hours before the strange occurrences of August and September 1859 began, the sun ejected an explosive burst of very hot, electrified gas – also called a “coronal mass ejection” or CME. This fast moving gas carried intense magnetic fields. When it reached Earth’s atmosphere, the CME sliced through Earth’s own magnetic field and rained down charged particles. Scientists have dubbed it a “solar superstorm.”
Evidence on the surface of the moon suggests that solar superstorms have happened many times in the past few million years.
There are nearly 1,000 satellites orbiting Earth right now. They’re used for everything from telephone calls – to radio and tv broadcasts – to scientific research – to financial transactions – to spying.
Sten Odenwald has submitted his study of the possible impacts of another superstorm on modern satellite systems to the journal Advances in Space Research. He expects it to be published soon.
In addition to damaged satellites, a superstorm might endanger astronauts on the International Space Station. It might even push the station into a lower earth orbit. That could cause it to fall out of orbit much earlier than planned unless its rockets are used to boost it up to a higher orbit.
Read a NASA news piece about the 1859 solar superstorm.
Read a NASA article about modeling the effects of the 1859 solar superstorm. It’s titled Taking on the Superstorm.
Our thanks to:
Sten Odenwald
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
Additional Teacher Resources
NASA: Solar Superstorm
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