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The Sun is the star of the Earth, and solar storms that occur during its cycle of activity can affect the Earth.
Nowadays, human beings rely most on the night sky to leave the sun, not only for roaming in the night sky, but also for various electronic devices and satellites that depend on the night sky, but solar storms can affect electronic equipment and even damage electronic equipment.
Recently, scientists from NASA said that a large amount of energy is expected to be released at the peak of solar energy activity in 2023, which has the potential to lead to the emergence of super solar storms.
This solar storm is special in that it is a solar flare activity triggered by the sun's activity cycle, which may affect the earth's magnetic field and network equipment, so what are the chances of human survival in the face of this challenge?
1. The source of solar storms.
Solar storms are caused by solar flare activity, which generates energy from the Sun's plasma when the magnetic field lines on the Sun are distorted.
This energy heats the gas on the sun, releasing a huge amount of energy, some of which is ejected into space in the form of plasma, forming a solar storm.
Solar storms can have an impact on the Earth, mainly because of the interaction between the Sun's magnetic field lines and the Earth's magnetic field lines.
The earth has its own magnetic field, which forms the geomagnetic field, which is the magnetic field lines generated by the interaction between the geomagnetic field and the magnetic field formed by the plasma formed by the solar storm to block the plasma of the solar storm from entering the earth's atmosphere.
2. The cycle of the sun's activity.
The sun's active cycle averages 11 years, which is also the frequency of solar storms.
The intensity of the sun's activity also varies during the solar cycle.
During this 11-year cycle, the intensity of the sun's activity will slowly increase and then slowly weaken, and 2023 happens to be the peak of solar energy activity.
At the peak of the Sun's activity, the magnetic field lines on the Sun will be greatly distorted, and there will be many sunspots in the equatorial region of the Sun.
A sunspot is a black spot on the surface of the sun, which is due to the interaction between the magnetic field lines of the sunspot and the magnetic field lines on the surface of the sun, resulting in the breakage of the magnetic field lines, thus producing a black point on the surface of the sun.
Sunspots in the equatorial region of the Sun often trigger flare activity, releasing radiant energy, some of which is ejected onto Earth in the form of solar storms.
And in the sun's activity cycle, the intensity of the sun's activity will also increase, then the intensity of the solar storm will also increase, that is to say, the intensity of the solar storm will also increase in the sun's activity cycle.
In addition, the power of solar storms will continue to increase, and generally speaking, the power of solar storms can be measured by the X scale, and the solar storm is the most powerful in the X scale.
The power of a solar storm can be classified as an X-class flare, an M-class flare, a C-class flare, and a Class A flare.
X-class flares are currently the largest solar flares and the most powerful solar storms.
M-class, C-class, and A-class flares are all less powerful, but when they occur on the Sun, they can also affect the Earth.
These impacts are mainly on human lives.
When the plasma of a solar storm enters the Earth's atmosphere, it collides with molecules and atoms in the atmosphere, resulting in a certain electric current.
These currents can have an impact on the power system on the planet, and when there is too much current in the power system, it can cause a short circuit in the power system, which can paralyze the power system, which can cause power outages in some parts of the earth.
The duration of the outage will vary depending on the intensity of the solar storm and the geographic location of each location.
In general, when the region is geographically close to the polar regions, the power outage will be longer, because the magnetic field lines in the polar regions are weaker, so it will be easier for the plasma of the solar storm to enter the atmosphere.
Solar storms can also have an impact on the communication system, which will cause a delay in the signal in the communication system, and some signals will be lost, and the guide system will also have an impact.
3. How to prevent the impact of solar storms on the earth.
Over the past few decades, solar storms have not only caused disruptions to human societies in the power and communication systems, but also caused economic losses to human beings.
In 1989, most of Canada and the United States experienced power system outages due to a solar storm in Canada and the United States, and the plasma from the solar storm entered the atmosphere of both countries and collided with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, resulting in widespread blackouts.
At that time, even parts of Canada and the United States experienced a nine-hour power outage, which caused some parts of Canada and the United States to go dark.
In 2003, some countries in Europe were also hit by solar storms, and the plasma of the solar storm entered the European atmosphere, which also had an impact on the power system.
During the 2003 solar storm, parts of Sweden and Denmark experienced blackouts, while fires broke out in some European countries due to the high temperatures caused by the solar storm.
At the same time, solar storms can also have an impact on communication systems, and some signals will be lost.
In the 2023 solar storm, it is expected to have an impact on the Earth's network, and the signal in the network equipment may be lost, and even the network in some countries will be paralyzed.
There is currently no way for humans to stop the impact of solar storms on human society.
Because humans are far away from the sun, the current level of human technology is not enough to make equipment that can block solar storms.
But humans can prepare for the effects of solar storms in advance through predictions and warnings.
Fourth, the odds of human survival.
Even if the 2023 solar storm causes disruptions to the Earth's power system and communication system, the chances of human survival are still very high.
Because the Earth's atmosphere and magnetosphere block the plasma of the solar storm from entering the Earth's atmosphere, thus protecting life on Earth from the direct effects of solar storms.
But if the geographical location of the Earth is close to the polar regions, then people in these areas may be harmed by solar storms, and these humans may be harmed by some radiation.
When the plasma of a solar storm enters the Earth's atmosphere, it collides with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, resulting in an electric current.
These currents can have an impact on electronic devices, causing them to break, which of course is what scientists are worried about.
Because human society is now inseparable from electronic devices, for those countries that rely on electronic equipment production, this solar storm may have a big impact on the economies of these countries, and even cause the economies of these countries to recession.
Overall, humans still have a good chance of survival, although there are some things that can be done to reduce the impact of solar storms on electronic devices.
Humans can strengthen the maintenance of electronic devices, and they can also make a backup of electronic devices, so that when electronic devices are damaged, they can be restored with the backup files.
V. Conclusion
In the face of the threat of solar storms, there are still some measures that can be taken to reduce the impact of solar storms on human society.
At present, the scientific and technological level of human beings is still limited, so it is necessary to strengthen the prediction and warning of solar storms, and timely notify human society of the impact of solar storms, so that human beings can be prepared to reduce the impact of solar storms on human society.