Could a giant solar flare cause a catastrophe?

Message boards : Science (non-SETI) : Could a giant solar flare cause a catastrophe?
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Profile Wiggo
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Message 1482738 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 9:51:21 UTC

I was just reading this article on our local web news service.

http://www.news.com.au/technology/science/could-a-giant-solar-flare-from-the-sun-cause-a-catastrophe-on-earth/story-fnjwlcze-1226840418308

THE sun just spat out its largest solar burst this year. Luckily, it wasn’t aimed at Earth, but could one of these giant eruptions bring our planet to a grinding halt?

When the sun got angry in 1859, American telegraph operators saw sparks fly.

A huge solar flare belched a cloud of charged particles into Earth’s path. But other than frying telegraph lines, the electromagnetic collision caused little stir in the world.

Nobody back then had yet switched on an incandescent light bulb, much less charged an iPhone.

Yet the sun hasn’t changed its ways, and that worries University of Kansas physicist Adrian Melott, among others.

It certainly gets 1 thinking of the ramifications of such an event.

Cheers.
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Message 1482743 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 10:21:06 UTC - in response to Message 1482738.  

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Message 1482755 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 11:52:35 UTC

We also had a few problems because of the recent solar activity IIRC

Although the solar flares caused relatively few problems here on Earth as this article states:

http://www.space.com/23934-weak-solar-cycle-space-weather.html
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Profile Bob DeWoody
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Message 1482797 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 15:34:39 UTC

From what I have seen and read I doubt that a solar flare could cause our extinction but it probably would set us back a hundred years or so. A massive meltdown of our power grid along with the destruction of the satellite network would be a severe blow to overcome. And without our little electronic devices some of us would be totally lost.
Bob DeWoody

My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events.
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Message 1482833 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 17:24:13 UTC

And without our little electronic devices some of us would be totally lost.


Ain't that the truth:)


We have to be kind to nature if we want nature to be kind to us I always say
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Message 1482897 - Posted: 28 Feb 2014, 20:14:47 UTC

Transistors and microcircuits for space use are more radiation resistant than silicon. Of course they cost more.
Tullio
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Message boards : Science (non-SETI) : Could a giant solar flare cause a catastrophe?


 
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