A violent solar storm can have serious consequences on earth.
In addition to the power grid, the Internet infrastructure is also at risk.
Munich - The sun constantly sends radiation and charged particles into space.
If this particle flow, also called solar wind, occurs for a short time and in a limited area much more strongly than usual, it is a solar flare.
This can also be dangerous for the earth.
If the geomagnetic material hits the earth, there is talk of a solar storm.
Such geomagnetic storms can wreak havoc on earth, especially power grids, radio networks and satellites are at risk.
A scientist is now warning of what a large solar storm could trigger on earth: an "Internet apocalypse".
Researcher: Solar storm could trigger "Internet apocalypse"
At the “Sigcomm 2021” (Special Interest Group on Data Communication) conference, the researcher Abdu Jyothi explained how important the Internet has become for the economy: If the Internet in the USA fails for a whole day, the damage will increase to more than seven Billions of dollars valued.
In her paper she continues: "What if the network doesn't work for days or even months?"
The corona pandemic showed her how unprepared the world was, Abdu Jyothi told Wired.com.
"There was no protocol to deal effectively with Corona and it is basically the same with the resilience of the Internet," continues Abdu Jyothi.
"We have a very limited understanding of the extent of the damage."
The strongest solar storm on earth in 1859 - event today would have glorifying effects
The strongest solar storm recorded to date on earth was the so-called "Carrington event" in 1859. At that time, the arrival of the charged particles caused failures in the telegraph network in North America and Europe.
Northern lights could even be seen in Rome and Hawaii.
A year ago, a solar storm hit the earth - polar lights could be seen for days.
If a solar storm with the strength of the "Carrington Event" hit Earth today, the effects would be grave.
A study from 2013, which examined the consequences of a “Carrington event” on the current US power grid, shows that 20 to 40 million people are likely to be without electricity for up to two years, the economic costs should therefore be alone in the USA amount to up to 2.6 trillion US dollars, reports the
Frankfurter Rundschau
.
Solar storm: Earth needs to prepare
Network operators must take the threat of extreme sunny weather seriously as the global internet infrastructure inevitably grows, said Abdu Jyothi.
Running more cables at lower widths is a good start, the scientist said, as is developing endurance tests that focus on the effects of large-scale network outages.
When the next major solar storm breaks out from our star, people on Earth will have about 13 hours to prepare for its arrival, she added.
Hopefully the earth will be prepared by then.
In September it is worth taking a look at the starry sky.
Because on the starry nights Jupiter and Saturn can be observed particularly well.
(jsch)
List of rubric lists: © NASA / dpa
