Picture this: No more scrolling through selfies and OOTDs on Instagram, no more quick Google searches, and no more binge-watching your favorite K-dramas on Netflix, Disney+, and other streaming platforms. It might sound like a plot twist in a movie, but Professor Peter Becker from George Mason University and his team are dead serious about the threat.
Social media has been abuzz with claims suggesting that a solar superstorm could lead to an internet apocalypse. The discourse gained traction with a Fox News art card bearing the headline, "Solar superstorm could ‘wipe out the internet’ for weeks or months, scientist says." Several other media outlets also reported on the superstorm, emphasizing the ongoing work by scientists to establish an early warning system against heightened solar activity.
The principal investigator leading this initiative is Peter Becker, a professor in George Mason University’s Department of Physics and Astronomy. In an interview with Fox Weather on November 8, Becker revealed that his team, in collaboration with the United States’ Department of Navy, is working on a $13.6 million federal grant to study and understand increased solar activity. The goal is to prevent a potential "internet apocalypse" that could disrupt electronic communications worldwide, including satellite communications.
Becker acknowledged the widespread coverage of the potential internet threat, attributing it to a potential increase in solar flares. He also shed light on coronal mass ejections (CMEs), describing them as "cannon shots" in increased solar activity. These large explosions of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun can distort the Earth's magnetic field upon impact.
Highlighting the importance of their early warning system, Becker mentioned that they can predict when CMEs are heading towards Earth, providing approximately 18 to 24 hours of advance notice before the particles reach our planet and interfere with its magnetic field.
Becker's interview coincides with the approaching "solar maximum" phase, a peak in the sun's 11-year solar cycle. NASA has indicated that during this time, there is a significantly increased solar activity, leading to more solar flares and CMEs. According to the US' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the solar maximum for the current cycle is expected between January and October 2024.
Drawing parallels with historical solar events, Becker referenced the Carrington Event of 1859 and the Halloween solar storms in 2003, illustrating how solar activities impacted technology. The Carrington Event, a CME, "totally wiped out the telegraph system," which was the 1859 equivalent of the internet.
Considering the potential economic consequences of a modern-day event, Becker emphasized the importance of the early warning system for implementing mitigation measures, including the possibility of switching off infrastructures. He also suggested the need for long-term measures such as "hardening" the infrastructure.
In collaboration with NASA, an international group of researchers has developed a computer model combining artificial intelligence (AI) with satellite data to predict impending solar storms 30 minutes in advance. NASA acknowledged the severe impacts of past solar storms, such as the 1989 blackout in Quebec, Canada, which lasted 12 hours and affected schools and businesses.
As the risk of geomagnetic storms increases with the approaching solar maximum, the importance of developing measures to protect critical technologies and services becomes paramount. Mark Miesch, solar cycle lead at NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, highlighted potential hazards including interference with the electrical grid, GPS signal degradation, increased orbital drag on satellites, and radiation hazards to airline crews and astronauts.
The ongoing research and development of early warning systems aim to safeguard against the potential technological chaos that could cripple economies and jeopardize the safety and livelihoods of people worldwide in the event of a solar superstorm.
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