Astronaut-menacing sunstorm spotted rippling across inner solar system Spacecraft orbiting the Earth, Moon, and Mars have all detected the same giant coronal mass ejection from the Sun – the first time vehicles in all three locations - plus one on the surface of Mars - have all observed the same event of this sort. The solar outburst, tagged GLE73, took place on October 28, 2021, and sent a huge …
"Luckily, it occurred between the Apollo 16 and 17 missions when nobody was on the moon."
Well ,indeed, but even were astronauts on the moon, there is always the Command Module Pilot orbiting the moon. One the moon's surface they might be able to hid behind a rock, but the orbiting craft could only change attitude to shield the Command Module with the booster, if not shielded by the Moon itself. Not a a happy thought.
Only 73 such [GLE] events have been detected since the 1940s -- So, on average, a little under once a year. For a typical ISS stay of six months, about a 50/50 change of exposure to a GLE.
Lunar explorers could have been hit by up to 10 gray worth of radiation if they were unlucky enough to be subjected to a coronal mass ejection event in August 1972. -- If this is true, and assuming this single instance is for an 80 year period of measurement, sending humans into space is incredibly risky.
I get the risks are compounded, but a lack of oxygen seems fairly risky to me on its own - just a little speck of debris travelling at v to the wrong place at the wrong time...
Anyhoo, when Zapp Brannigan's in charge, every mission is a suicide mission.
And the Carrington Event in 1852 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event) would have probably destroyed most satellites in orbit by frying the electronics. NASA simply state that it would be impractical to shield satellites against an event of that magnitude.
"...the Carrington Event in 1852 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event) would have probably destroyed most satellites in orbit by frying the electronics..."
It would fry quite a lot of stuff on the ground too.
See the article for reports of telegraph operators getting shocks from their equipment, and one of operators working a link for two hours without the batteries connected.
I suspect that something similar to the Carrington Event happening now would send society back to the 1930s.
Looking on the bright side, most modern weaponry would probably be destroyed.
But you could forget about the Internet for at least a few years.
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"But you could forget about the Internet for at least a few years."
You could forget about everything connected to the electrical grid.
We just dont have the capacity to build the number of transformers/switchgear that would be fried by a carrington.
So essential isolated power only until fuel for the gennies runs out. after that.....
And to consider that upto 150 yrs ago, we would have looked at the lights in the sky, muttered something about divine something or other and gone back to sleep
I'm sure I wouldn't like to be airborne in a fly-by-wire plane at the time of such an incident!
I found this an interesting read, from EarthSky: How likely is another Carrington Event? Following "proper" scientific form, there's no unsupported declaration of any certainty of knowledge :)
Roentgens to REM (Roentgens Equivalent, Man) to Sieverts to Grays to <What's_next?>
Could someone pick a unit of measure, and stick with it, fer Christ's sake?
Legal limits for workers: 5 REM per calendar year, not to exceed 3 REM per calendar quarter - 10 CFR 20
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