space weather
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Traces Of Giant, 2,700-Year-Old Solar Storm Detected In Greenland Ice
Evidence of an unusually strong solar storm that hit Earth in 660 BCE has been detected in Greenland ice cores—a finding which shows we still have lots to learn about these disruptive events.
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A Powerful Solar Storm Likely Detonated Dozens Of US Sea Mines During The Vietnam War
An analysis of recently declassified US military documents confirms suspicions that, during the late stages of the Vietnam War, a powerful solar storm caused dozens of sea mines to explode. It’s a stark reminder of the Sun’s potential to disrupt our technological activities in unexpected ways.
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Why Has Our Sun Been Freaking Out So Much Lately?
The solar flare as seen by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory on September 10, 2017. (Image: NASA/SDO/Goddard) Since early last week, the Sun has belched out a steady stream of solar flares, including the most powerful burst recorded in the star’s current 11-year cycle. It sounds very alarming, but scientists say this is simply what stars…
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Proposed Trump Budget Would Kill Program That Monitors Debilitating Solar Storms
The idea that a huge solar storm could wreak havoc here on Earth isn’t just a sci-fi plot, it’s a situation that countries and power grids around the world actively prepare for. But the Trump administration’s latest 2017 budget proposal would completely eliminate the program that keeps the continental US under 24/7 protection from this…