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Last Post 3/20/2012 10:44 AM by Emilia Kilpua

solar storms

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3/20/2012 6:39 AM
Maurico (SA) Can a solar storm cause significant damage, what about astronauts in space?

Claire Raftery

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Posts:71

3/20/2012 9:58 AM
Solar storms can indeed cause damage. They can damage satellites (check out the white streaks on these images - these are from a solar storm : http://sohowww.nascom.nas...0th/multisun_sm.mpg) or sometimes even cause damage to power lines on Earth (http://en.wikipedia.org/w..._geomagnetic_storm). Astronauts in space are at significant risk if they are exposed to solar radiation in too high a dose. Because they are above the shielding of the Earth's magnetic field, they don't have the everyday protection you and I have. In the case of a solar storm, they are ordered back into their vehicle and into protective chambers to minimize any radiation dose they may be exposed to. You may not know this but the astronauts on Apollo 16 and 17 were very lucky. Between these two missions there was a large solar storm produced the most amount of protons in a decade - http://curator.jsc.nasa.gov/lunar/images/intro_img_8.jpg . If there had been astronauts on their way to/from the moon at the time, they almost certainly would have died. That is why is it so important that we continue to monitor the Sun and run predictions of if and when a coronal mass ejection will impact the Earth.

Emilia Kilpua

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Posts:88

3/20/2012 10:44 AM
Hi Maurico! Solar storms can cause different types of damage. Energetic particles from solar flares and coronal mass ejection (CME) driven shock waves can for example damage satellites and they are dangarous for astronauts. Airplanes flying on polar routes may need to divert when powerful solar eruption has happened. When a CME impacts the Earth and drives a storm in the Earth's magnetosphere there are strong variations in the electric fields in the ionosphere that can induce strong current in the ground-based pipelines and power transmission system. The most famous is the solar storm in March 1989 that collapsed Hydro-Quebed power grid. About six million people were left without power for nine hours and there were significant economic losses. Our society is becoming more dependent on space- and ground-based technology that solar storms can harm, so if there will be a very strong storm in the near future it can have more severe effects on our infrastructure during the previous solar cycles. One curious example how astronauts safety can be endangered due to solar flares is the big flare that occured on August 1972. This flare erupted when the Apollo 16 crew had just returned to the Earth in April and the crew of Apollo 17 was preparing for the next Moon mission in December. Had they been in operation the astronauts might have received a deadly dose of radiation. Emilia