The Day the Sun Brought Darkness

[Balog]

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/sun_darkness.html

Fascinating look at a widespread blackout caused by solar activity.

[230RN]

And they laugh when I put foil under my hat. :neener:

But seriously, I wonder what kind of actual voltages and currents are created in the ground and power lines when one of these hits. 

[Ben]

I think we've talked about this one in the past, along with the Carrington event. Always a good reminder for a thoughtful discussion though. The general public scoffs about the possibility, but when you think about it, traveling 93 million miles, all it takes is a miniscule change in trajectory to put one of the massive storms that have missed us over the millennia smack into Earth's bullseye.

Really, Carrington (and likely many more in the distant past) already was one of those. Had it hit 150 years later, we might not be talking about it right now, except in person in front of the communal cooking fire at the APS bugout compound*.  

*Except that the APS bugout compound would have enough electricity to power a large city, as well as flying cars, RADAR, robotic defensive systems (and robots!) and detcord.

[MillCreek]

^^^I would also like roving honey badgers with frickin' laser beams attached to their foreheads.

[roo_ster]

^^^I would also like roving honey badgers with frickin' laser beams attached to their foreheads.

Weren't those outlawed by the Hague Convention?

[RevDisk]

I think we've talked about this one in the past, along with the Carrington event. Always a good reminder for a thoughtful discussion though. The general public scoffs about the possibility, but when you think about it, traveling 93 million miles, all it takes is a miniscule change in trajectory to put one of the massive storms that have missed us over the millennia smack into Earth's bullseye.

Really, Carrington (and likely many more in the distant past) already was one of those. Had it hit 150 years later, we might not be talking about it right now, except in person in front of the communal cooking fire at the APS bugout compound*.  

*Except that the APS bugout compound would have enough electricity to power a large city, as well as flying cars, RADAR, robotic defensive systems (and robots!) and detcord.

I'm not scoffing, just saying we'd likely not revert to Mad Max due to a Carrington event. We've had significant solar storms in 1859, 1882, 1921, 1938, 1989, 2000 and 2003. We had a near miss in 2013. It's cost billions or trillions to replace damaged infrastructure, but not "end of the world" situation.

[Balog]

I'm not scoffing, just saying we'd likely not revert to Mad Max due to a Carrington event. We've had significant solar storms in 1859, 1882, 1921, 1938, 1989, 2000 and 2003. We had a near miss in 2013. It's cost billions or trillions to replace damaged infrastructure, but not "end of the world" situation.

Honest question as I don't know: where any of those of the same magnitude as the Carrington event? And is that particular event considered the upper bounds of what a solar storm can do, or is it merely the biggest that's hit us since industrialization?

[230RN]

Partially answering my own question:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_storm_of_1859
(The Carrington event)

Telegraph systems all over Europe and North America failed, in some cases giving telegraph operators electric shocks.[10] Telegraph pylons threw sparks.[11] Some telegraph operators could continue to send and receive messages despite having disconnected their power supplies.[12]

[RevDisk]

Honest question as I don't know: where any of those of the same magnitude as the Carrington event? And is that particular event considered the upper bounds of what a solar storm can do, or is it merely the biggest that's hit us since industrialization?

Probably less but we don't know.
No, earth will be probably completely destroyed by a solar storm, or thrown out of the solar system. Completely sterilized long before that. May take 1-7 billion years.
Yes.

[dogmush]

Weren't those outlawed by the Hague Convention?

APS isn't a signatory.

[Ben]

I'm not scoffing, just saying we'd likely not revert to Mad Max due to a Carrington event. We've had significant solar storms in 1859, 1882, 1921, 1938, 1989, 2000 and 2003. We had a near miss in 2013. It's cost billions or trillions to replace damaged infrastructure, but not "end of the world" situation.

Recognize  that. Just needed to get the APS apocalypse compound into a reply.  

For a Carrington sized event, I would expect some longer term cascade problems related to things like not having backup transformers ready to go, etc. Transportation, shipping, some communications, electronic financial transactions, store inventories. Enough to want to keep me away from many public spaces for a few days to a few months. A lot of it would depend on just where the storm hits, what satellites get knocked out, etc.

Probably the greatest rioting will be due to the unavailability of facebook and twitter.