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There’s debate among scientists about how much can be done to shield vulnerable parts of the planet’s infrastructure from the effects of solar storms. Steps such as using non-magnetic steel in transformers and installing more surge protectors in the grid could bolster resistance, but in the end the best defense against catastrophe might be better forecasting.
That would go a long way toward helping utilities prepare for shortages and making sure there are paths to back up their systems in case they lose power. In weeks, a new model developed by the University of Michigan will come online to help improve Earth-bound forecasting.In the U.K., National Grid is building up its supply of spare transformers and conducting regular drills to deal with a major space weather event, said Mark Prouse, deputy director of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, a ministerial department.
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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/solar-storms-back-threatening-life-120000564.html#:~:text=The%20eruption%2C%20called%20a%20coronal,geomagnetic%20storm%20seen%20for%20years.
The problem is real because of mostly magnetic memory and computer chips. Let's look at super low voltage chips and magnetic memory in things like Cell phones and laptop computers for example. These same low voltage chips and memory storage are now in all sorts of technology from spacecraft to Airplanes, to cars to ships and all you need is one "Carrington Event" type of storm that hits earth directly and literally everything above 10 feet deep under the earth not shielded from a direct blast of a Carrinton Event level Solar storm could be fried which is why England right now appears to be leading the way to try to protect electrical infrastructure of all kinds.
Here's the problem:
Though you need a solar storm of large enough intensity and you also need it to fire off directly at the earth, this could happen and does periodically through chance.
For example, the Carrington event if it hit earth directly would cause maybe about 1 trillion dollars in damage immediately. Why?
Think about this for a moment:
Most hard drives fried in computers from laptops to cell phones on that side of the planet that had a direct hit.
Most chips in Cars on that side of the planet fried and never to work again (the chips).
Most planes falling out of the sky when the chips that allow the yoke or steering wheel to transfer movements to the control surfaces of the plane not working anymore (permanently until the chips are replaced). And most self driving cars either malfunctioning or suddenly stopping while you are driving at any speed with (what results)?
Most cars built after points stopped being used distribute electricity to the cylinders of cars through spark plugs won't work anymore at all until those chips are replaced (likely from plants on the other side of the planet from where the solar flare hit).
But, if it is a sustained burst it might be theoretically possible that all chips on earth could also fried except in military equipment designed to survive nuclear EMPS which are also pretty much the same thing as large Solar EMPs (Electromagnetic Pulses).
Could you imagine if all computer chips on earth suddenly became unusable and only cars with points (before 1970s) could still be used?
What would that do to human civilization? in the short run? In the long run?
Because no missiles could fire either even nuclear ones. (Because they all need computer chips to function).
So no jet planes working
No cars with chips working
All magnetic memory lost on earth where the solar flare hit (Potentially).
The reality of all this could be catastrophic depending upon how dependent human civilization is on computer chips for anything at that point.
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