satellites getting blown outta the sky
no, not from north korean missiles
but something much more probable and realistic
you’ve probably heard of or seen photos of the
aurora borealis - well, that's just a night light compared
to what's coming-up very soon from our friend the sun
you may say, how can mr. sun hurt us?
heck, he is 93 million miles away
it happens that these storms aren’t just in the business
of putting on a colorful nighttime light show
the coming solar storms are going to wreak havoc
cause trouble and maybe make us all black people
they can also interfere with GPS and satellites
and will even cause major power
outages
later this year, solar activity is expected to increase big time
and so will the likelihood that these storms will affect our
everyday lives here on earth, hope you like it toasty
travel, communications, phone service even basic cable
are all vulnerable to these blazing solar storms
probably the water in your puppy's bowl will evaporate as well
what can be done!!!
just closing your eyes and wishing for the best
won't cut it this time so
let us hear from the experts
On the Sun’s surface, turbulent magnetic activity creates what are called sunspots. If the sunspots are powerful enough, they can cause bursts of light known as solar flares.
Sunspots and other solar activity can also release charged particles and plasma from the Sun’s surface. The ejection of these particles is known as a coronal mass ejection, or CME.
While solar flares can create some disruptions here on Earth, it’s the CMEs that cause major problems.
The charged particles of a CME typically take about three days to reach Earth. When they do, they usually bounce off the magnetic field surrounding the planet.
Here’s where the pretty lights come in. The aurora in the night sky is actually caused by those particles from the CME bouncing around in Earth’s magnetic field.
But it can turn ugly. If enough particles get trapped in the magnetic field, they can actually cause it to shake. This shaking is called a geomagnetic storm and it can wreak havoc on our electric grids.
why is this so important now
solar activity goes in 11-year cycles
the current cycle is expected to reach its solar maximum
later this year, about september or so
looks like this next football season could be a hot one
and maybe not on TV and maybe with melted balls
while this doomsday situation is unlikely
scientists and power companies have issued warnings
to the NFL to have their pigskins hardened
and the NHL to prepare for a water polo season
the rest of us could prepare for possible blackouts
no texting and worst of all, no air conditioning
so, that generator you’ve been thinking about getting
that may not be such a bad idea
because these coming micro waves
won't heat-up your chili so you'll need your microwave oven
and what would you do without your microwave
