3 ms·

NASA is planning for Space Weather Follow-on mission in 2025 that's going to stick a probe at L1 point between the Earth and the Sun, providing some ~22 mins of

NASA is planning for Space Weather Follow-on mission in 2025 that's going to stick a probe at L1 point between the Earth and the Sun, providing some ~22 mins of heads up when shit hits the fan (Carrington-like event). Unfortunately, I am not aware of any emergency procedures that can benefit from such an alarm in DOE or any public electricity infrastructure. They might very well exist, anyone knows? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Weather_Follow_On-Lagrange_1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Weather_Follow_On-Lagran...

laminatedsmore 5y ago
afaik the aim is to provide enough warning to protect transformers, I guess by powering them down in some way? Not sure it answers your question but in case interesting here's a link to a UK document describing 'space weather preparedness strategy' https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449593/BIS-15-457-space-weather-preparedness-strategy.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/...
- pdonis 5y ago
  Not just transistors--we could basically shut down the entire power grid for the time it takes the event to pass and disconnect enough connections to protect key components like the transformers. It would be a few hours of no power in order to avoid damage that could cause outages of weeks or months or years.
  - bserge 5y ago
    What about power plants? IIRC a sudden loss of electricity demand can lead to massive damage (specifically to the turbines and generators).
elevaet 5y ago
Can't we already predict Carrington-like events by watching for massive solar flares? I thought even at the time astronomers saw it coming in advance. Perhaps this is just a more precise measurer; a space-weather bouy in our backyard.
bserge 5y ago
Well, at least for households it would be plenty of time to disconnect everything (even cut cables) and dump some valuable electronics in the dishwasher.

laminatedsmore 5y ago

afaik the aim is to provide enough warning to protect transformers, I guess by powering them down in some way? Not sure it answers your question but in case interesting here's a link to a UK document describing 'space weather preparedness strategy' https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449593/BIS-15-457-space-weather-preparedness-strategy.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/...

pdonis 5y ago
Not just transistors--we could basically shut down the entire power grid for the time it takes the event to pass and disconnect enough connections to protect key components like the transformers. It would be a few hours of no power in order to avoid damage that could cause outages of weeks or months or years.
- bserge 5y ago
  What about power plants? IIRC a sudden loss of electricity demand can lead to massive damage (specifically to the turbines and generators).

elevaet 5y ago

Can't we already predict Carrington-like events by watching for massive solar flares? I thought even at the time astronomers saw it coming in advance. Perhaps this is just a more precise measurer; a space-weather bouy in our backyard.

bserge 5y ago

Well, at least for households it would be plenty of time to disconnect everything (even cut cables) and dump some valuable electronics in the dishwasher.