Huge Solar Flares In Next Decade Could Cause Year-Long Blackouts, and Nuclear Crises Says NOAA

Wed Aug 10, 2011 at 10:17 PM PDT
Huge Solar Flares In Next Decade Could Cause Year-Long Blackouts, and Nuclear Crises Says NOAA
by HoundDog

This morning I wrote a diary on yesterday's enormous solar flare, with an X-ray magnitude of X6.9 on the GOES scale, that erupted with a coronal mass ejection, in a direction away from earth. Sun Ejects Most Powerful Solar Flare In Five Years, See Video.

I promised the many commenters who asked what might happen if such an eruption occurred in our direction, that I would research this question. It turns out that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, not only has thought this through, but predicts that we could have solar eruptions strong enough to disrupt power grids, GPS, air travel, and communication in the next four years, in an article released this evening.

IB Times Staff Reporter writes Bigger Solar Flares Could Cause Year-Long Blackouts, Nuclear Crisis

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted Earth could be hit by at least four gigantic solar storms in the next couple of years, which could cause global disruptions in GPS systems, power grids, satellite communications, and airline communications.

The NOAA predicted four “extreme” solar emissions which could threaten the planet this decade, while NASA has warned that a peak in the sun's magnetic energy cycle and the number of sun spots or flares around 2013 could cause extremely high radiation levels...

MUCH MORE AT: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/08/11/1005673/-Huge-Solar-Flares-In-Next-Decade-Could-Cause-Year-Long-Blackouts,-and-Nuclear-Crises-Says-NOAA-?via=siderec

and the media also. (Just half kidding.) I know it's serious. It could mean no computers for a year. Reading is fundamental.

gone off the rails and doesn't seem to believe in "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" anymore. We are eaten up with teh stupid. We should put America to work on these projects ASAP.

the more the better to them; they always see the silver lining of profit opportunity and shock doctrine politics. :grr:

if we get hit with a low grad X flare, we are done.

...with tax cuts for the rich....

That's alarming!

comes up with a page removed message. This same story ran a day or two ago on DU though and I checked it out. There is an article on the front page of the NOAA website about the dangers of solar flares and it doesn't say anything about power grids going down for years. It does say a storm could cause $1 or $2 trillion globally. The IBC story, before it was yanked, said power could be out for a decade. I'm not buying it.

http://www.noaa.gov/features/03_protecting/whenthesunactsup.html

It's dated two days earlier, looks like the only difference is the headline: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/194166/20110808/solar-storms-severe-solar-storms-earth-paralyse-carrington-event.htm

everybody will be dead before they reach 65.

Seriously, if such an enormous solar flare does hit the earth you can kiss your ass goodbye.

Pretty reliable, that is.