Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




SOLAR SCIENCE
Earth survived near-miss from 2012 solar storm: NASA
by Staff Writers
Washington (AFP) July 24, 2014


Back in 2012, the Sun erupted with a powerful solar storm that just missed the Earth but was big enough to "knock modern civilization back to the 18th century," NASA said.

The extreme space weather that tore through Earth's orbit on July 23, 2012, was the most powerful in 150 years, according to a statement posted on the US space agency website Wednesday.

However, few Earthlings had any idea what was going on.

"If the eruption had occurred only one week earlier, Earth would have been in the line of fire," said Daniel Baker, professor of atmospheric and space physics at the University of Colorado.

Instead the storm cloud hit the STEREO-A spacecraft, a solar observatory that is "almost ideally equipped to measure the parameters of such an event," NASA said.

Scientists have analyzed the treasure trove of data it collected and concluded that it would have been comparable to the largest known space storm in 1859, known as the Carrington event.

It also would have been twice as bad as the 1989 solar storm that knocked out power across Quebec, scientists said.

"I have come away from our recent studies more convinced than ever that Earth and its inhabitants were incredibly fortunate that the 2012 eruption happened when it did," said Baker.

The National Academy of Sciences has said the economic impact of a storm like the one in 1859 could cost the modern economy more than two trillion dollars and cause damage that might take years to repair.

Experts say solar storms can cause widespread power blackouts, disabling everything from radio to GPS communications to water supplies -- most of which rely on electric pumps.

They begin with an explosion on the Sun's surface, known as a solar flare, sending X-rays and extreme UV radiation toward Earth at light speed.

Hours later, energetic particles follow and these electrons and protons can electrify satellites and damage their electronics.

Next are the coronal mass ejections, billion-ton clouds of magnetized plasma that take a day or more to cross the Sun-Earth divide.

These are often deflected by Earth's magnetic shield, but a direct hit could be devastating.

There is a 12 percent chance of a super solar storm the size of the Carrington event hitting Earth in the next 10 years, according to physicist Pete Riley, who published a paper in the journal Space Weather earlier this year on the topic.

His research was based on an analysis of solar storm records going back 50 years.

"Initially, I was quite surprised that the odds were so high, but the statistics appear to be correct," said Riley.

"It is a sobering figure."

.


Related Links
Solar Science News at SpaceDaily






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





SOLAR SCIENCE
Messenger and Stereo Open New Window Into Solar Processes
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Jul 11, 2014
Understanding the sun from afar isn't easy. How do you figure out what powers solar flares - the intense bursts of radiation coming from the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots - when you must rely on observing only the light and particles that make their way to near-Earth's orbit? One answer: you get closer. NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft - which orbits Mercury, and so is as ... read more


SOLAR SCIENCE
China's biggest moon challenge: returning to earth

Lunar Pits Could Shelter Astronauts, Reveal Details of How 'Man in the Moon' Formed

Manned mission to Moon scheduled by Roscosmos for 2020-2031

Landsat Looks to the Moon

SOLAR SCIENCE
Scientists release most thorough map yet of Mars

India could return to Mars as early as 2017

Curiosity's images show Earth-like soils on Mars

NASA Rover's Images Show Laser Flash on Martian Rock

SOLAR SCIENCE
Voyager Spacecraft Might Not Have Reached Interstellar Space

New Fort Knox: A means to a solar-system-wide economy

SSERVI: Serving NASA's Mission to the Moon and Beyond, Part 2

NASA Announces Early Career Faculty Space Tech Research Grants

SOLAR SCIENCE
Lunar rock collisions behind Yutu damage

China's Fast Track To Circumlunar Mission

Chinese moon rover designer shooting for Mars

Yutu designer's bittersweet

SOLAR SCIENCE
Next ISS Cargo Spacecraft Rolls Out to Pad

Russian cargo craft docks with ISS, science satellite fails

Russian Resupply Spacecraft to Deliver Snails to ISS for Experiments

Lockheed provides support services for ISS program

SOLAR SCIENCE
SpaceX Soft Lands Falcon 9 Rocket First Stage

SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 Flights Deemed Successful

ISS 'space truck' launch postponed: Arianespace

45th Space Wing launches 6 second-generation ORBCOMM satellites

SOLAR SCIENCE
Transiting Exoplanet with Longest Known Year

Brown Dwarfs May Wreak Havoc on Orbits of Nearby Planets

NASA Mission To Reap Bonanza of Earth-sized Planets

Friction from Tides Could Help Distant Earths Survive, and Thrive

SOLAR SCIENCE
Researchers crush diamond with biggest laser in world

New UV laser capabilities being developed for Army

New material puts a twist in light

Efficient structures help build a sustainable future




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.