Comments
jack104 t1_jee35gp wrote
Thats amazing but 30 minutes warning isn't gonna do our electronic and power grids much help, is it?
Oskarikali t1_jeehylg wrote
Might be enough time to emergency land some planes.
jack104 t1_jeejmos wrote
Yea the more I think about it, that would give enough time to safely land planes and do controlled shut downs of substations, Telcom, internet and maybe even let you adjust satellite orbits and/or evac the crew of the ISS if you were Johnny on the spot.
Willinton06 t1_jefpz9r wrote
Enough time to shut them down, we only need to shut them down for a few minutes too so this system could literally save society from total chaos
JustAZeph t1_jeenet4 wrote
It’s enough time to shut down generators if you know ahead of time you’ll only have a 30 minute window within a couples days time
bookers555 t1_jefv3gc wrote
At least it's enough time for us to start panicking.
3nderslime t1_jef2cuu wrote
30 min seems short, but it is of course better than no warning. Thanks for this amazing team that will undoubtedly save a lot of lives
marketrent OP t1_jed00dm wrote
Excerpt from the linked content^1 by Vanessa Thomas:
>Like a tornado siren for life-threatening storms in America’s heartland, a new computer model that combines artificial intelligence (AI) and NASA satellite data could sound the alarm for dangerous space weather.
>The model uses AI to analyze spacecraft measurements of the solar wind (an unrelenting stream of material from the Sun) and predict where an impending solar storm will strike, anywhere on Earth, with 30 minutes of advance warning.
>This could provide just enough time to prepare for these storms and prevent severe impacts on power grids and other critical infrastructure.
>For example, a destructive solar storm in 1989 caused electrical blackouts across Quebec for 12 hours, plunging millions of Canadians into the dark and closing schools and businesses.
>The most intense solar storm on record, the Carrington Event in 1859, sparked fires at telegraph stations and prevented messages from being sent.
>If the Carrington Event happened today, it would have even more severe impacts, such as widespread electrical disruptions, persistent blackouts, and interruptions to global communications. Such technological chaos could cripple economies and endanger the safety and livelihoods of people worldwide.
>In addition, the risk of geomagnetic storms and devastating effects on our society is presently increasing as we approach the next “solar maximum” – a peak in the Sun’s 11-year activity cycle – which is expected to arrive sometime in 2025.
^1 Vanessa Thomas for NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Cente, 30 Mar. 2023, https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2023/sun/nasa-enabled-ai-predictions-may-give-time-to-prepare-for-solar-storms/