Solar Storms facts
While investigating facts about Solar Storms, I found out little known, but curios details like:
The solar storm of 1859 caused worldwide electrical failure, with telegraph systems being knocked out, some throwing sparks and shocking operators. This event, if it occured today, would cause trillions in damages.
A solar storm like the Carrington Event in 1859 would cause devastation to world electronics if it happened today.
In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across. Here are 50 of the best facts about Solar Storms I managed to collect.
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Concorde flew so high passengers received twice the dose of radiation from flying in a conventional aircraft, which was believed to increase cancer risk. The flight deck contained a radiometer so they could descend in case of a solar storm.
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Ancient solar storms can be detected in tree rings
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The biggest solar storms in history was recorded in 1989. The storm was so massive that the Northern Lights could be seen in southern states like Florida
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NASA is creating an "interstellar internet", called Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN). It can transmit information through solar storms, solar flares, and even past planets without losing any original data. It successfully sent images to a spacecraft located 20 million miles from earth.
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There was a massive solar storm in 1859 that sparked fires in telegraph offices. Were a storm of that size to hit today, it would knock out power grids for months or longer.
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A solar super storm on July 23 2012 missed Earth by just 9 days. If it had hit, as one did in 1859, it would have sent us back to the 18th century overnight, rendering our electrical systems inoperable (incl. satellites).
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An 1859 solar storm caused the Northern Lights/Aurora Borealis to be seen as far south as Cuba
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In 1859 the most powerful recorded solar storm shocked telegraph operators through their machines and set their papers on fire.
Solar Storms data charts
For your convenience take a look at Solar Storms figures with stats and charts presented as graphic.
What is true about solar storms?
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In 1859 there was a solar storm so powerful it shut down telegraph systems in North America and Europe. Aurora's stretched as far as the Caribbean.
In 1859 the largest solar storm on record, the Carrington Event, would devastate modern technology, and caused the northern lights to be seen as far south as Cuba - source
A massive solar storm (Coronal Mass Ejection) has enough momentum to remove dust on the moon - source
On 23rd June 2012 there was a massive solar storm that, had it occured 9 days later, would have hit Earth and caused up to $2.6 trillion dollars damage in the US alone and taken 4-10 years to recover from.
When solar storms erupt on the surface of the Sun, the aurora is very strong and extends further away from the Earth's poles.
The biggest storm in our Solar System's history occurred on Saturn and raged over six months to encircle the entire planet
The pressure in the exosphere is created by solar wind storms that compress it.
In 1967, at the height of the Cold War, a Solar Storm jammed U.S. Radars leading the Air Force to believe that The Soviets were attacking America. Scientists explained what happend to the US Government just in time before it launched a counter-attack.
If the solar storm of 2012 had hit Earth, the resulting damage would have cost $2.6 trillion, and it would have taken four to ten years to recover.
