Solar flares could disrupt communication and powerlines, warn experts
02 Mar 2011
Scientists are warning about a new destructive threat originating from deep space that disrupted communications in China on Valentine's Day. The threat comes from a storm brewing 93 million miles away, on the Sun.
Prior to the Valentine's Day storm (solar flare), in January, a similar flare that was capable of causing problems with satellites missed the earth.
Over the past few months, scientists have recorded some of the strongest solar flares in years. Websites like SolarStormWarning.com have already sounded an alarm.
"Solar flare activity that's going to be much worse than what we've seen in the past. We're not talking about a few cities losing power, we're talking about it could be half the country, may be more."
According to Sierra College astronomy professor Dave Kenyon, the sun is now producing slightly more energy than normal. However, there is no reason to be worry about mass power outages as the sun approaches the peak of its solar storm cycle in 2013, he adds.
Kenyon said there was a chance of the earth receiving a very high output from the sun, adding that though it is not likely but the possibility is always there.
The sun's activity peaked every 11 years in a phenomenon called "solar max."
According to Kenyon, the solar max expected in 2013, would be only slightly stronger than a typical solar max.
