For reasons of survival, the US government urgently launched an action plan in response to this terrible natural disaster.
Recently, scientists from NASA announced that the culprit that is wiping out the atmosphere and water from Mars – solar storms.
This is enough to see how terrible the force of the solar storm is. And not only that, NASA also believes that the frequency of solar storms is appearing more and more, and currently constitutes the greatest danger to life on Earth.
Many studies show that Mars once had a lot of water …
According to expert estimates, a sufficiently large magnetic storm could wreak havoc on our power grids and communications within months, causing economic losses of … $ 2 trillion (roughly 44444 billion) – a terrible number.
Solar Storm – the most “powerful” storm
Solar winds are essentially the flow of protons and electrons, with a speed of around 1.6 million km / h. With a very low gravity planet like Mars, the atmosphere has been badly damaged, turning Mars into a dead planet.
Our land is different. Due to the possession of a sufficiently strong magnetic field, the solar winds will be deflected on the approach. Therefore, our atmosphere is still safe at least for now.
As for the Earth, it will be like that …
However, NASA said intense solar storms, while not harmful to the atmosphere, have the ability to penetrate magnetic fields, destroying entire electrical systems around the world. The scary thing is that the whole process only took place for an hour.
This event never happens. In fact, in 1989, the solar storm had such an impact, but only to a small extent in Quebec, Canada. The storm completely destroyed Quebec’s transportation network in 9 hours.
A close up of part of the Sun’s surface.
NASA experts predict that the probability of a storm of destructive power reaching earth in the next 10 years is 12%. Seems small, right? But this “monster”, if present, will cause about … $ 2 trillion – 10 times more damage than any other natural disaster in history.
Therefore, 12% is more than enough for the US government to ignore the risk of Earth losing a huge amount of money. They developed the following plan:
Predict the time of the explosion of the “slow bomb” of the sun
While there is no way to counter the radiation rays emitted by the Sun, we can limit its damage by making predictions about them. Currently, the US Center for Space Weather Forecasts monitors the sun 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to determine this point.
It’s hard to know when this “bomb” goes off
“Think of the sun as a volcano,” said Thomas Berger, director of the Space Weather Forecast Center. It’s unclear when the volcano will erupt, but we can see signs of its formation.
3pm warning …
Once a hurricane hits, the US Atmospheric and Oceans Administration (NOAA) will be able to provide information to relevant agencies – including the aerospace, space and power sectors 12 to 3 p.m. before the disaster.
That’s the maximum time we can predict with current technology, Berger says. He hopes that in the near future, this warning system can be improved.
However, predicting the time in a few hours is not enough. We also need to know the strength of the storm.
And act in just 1 hour
According to NOAA, the strength of a solar storm will be determined within an hour before the hurricane hits. The magnitude of a magnetic storm would be predicted by a “forecast buoy” placed about 1.5 million km from Earth. This float is known as the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE).
ACE is in position L1
When the storm hits the ACE set point, the device sends back to Earth detailed information about the monster we are about to face. With the communication speed at the speed of light, it takes about 15 to 60 minutes to kick in before the storm hits.
To date, ACE has been operating for 17 years and will soon be replaced by a new device – the Space Climate Monitoring Satellite (DSCOVR).
Dealing with solar storms – a concern for the whole world
In the action plan launched this time, the US government called on 24 ministries, departments and agencies to take action to implement the standards set within the next 1 to 2 years.
Scientists are doing everything to save the Earth
Tasks are in place, such as creating technical standards, developing the capacity to assess damage, establishing decision points and action thresholds, identifying risks, improving responses and rehabilitation planning. ..
Moreover, the United States is not the only country to act before this potential catastrophe. The European Space Agency is currently working with scientists from 14 countries on the continent to develop a solar storm warning network.
It can be said that protecting the Earth is a vital task for us. Before science finds a vital planet, we all have a responsibility to protect the only human roof.
