IMPACT: Coronal Mass Ejection Has HIT....

NOAA Space Environment Center ^ | October 29, 2003

[John H K]

Space Weather Message Code: WARSUD Serial Number: 31 Issue Time: 2003 Oct 29 0607 UTC

WARNING: Geomagnetic Sudden Impulse expected Valid From: 2003 Oct 29 0620 UTC Valid To: 2003 Oct 29 0630 UTC IP Shock Passage Observed: 2003 Oct 29 0600 UTC

[_Jim]

So far -

o the 10 Meter (28 - 29.7 MHz) Amateur band is stone dead - it was hopping yesterday as I worked, from the car with a 40 W radio - a station in central Montanna and several stations along the east coast including one on Long Island, NY from Tejas ...

o The 40 M band (7.0 - 7.3 MHz) is showing weak signals; much weaker than normal BUT the band is usuable ...

[_Jim]

I suppose I'm glad to know that even with those restrictions in place, the grid is forecast to handle demand. Of course, it's not exactly a hot summer day.

Forewarned is forearmed! Since they had advance warning this time it's easier to 'brace' for it and respect the operating guidelines put in place for such an event.

A good, short 'read' on the 1989 Quebec blackout due to HV transmission probs can be seen here: www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1009965/posts?page=96#96

BTW - Alex Jones will be heard loud and clear across the continent today - I just checked 12.172 MHz and there's a good signal into Tejas.

10 MHz WWV from Boulder CO. is marginaally receivable on a portable SW receiver, so, the bands aren't completely 'flattened' ...

[Dog Gone]

Giant solar flare slams into Earth

15:00 29 October 03

NewScientist.com news service

A giant cloud of charged particles from the Sun slammed into the Earth's magnetic field on Wednesday morning, causing a severe geomagnetic storm and increasing auroral activity. The particles were blasted off from the star at 1154 GMT on Tuesday, in the largest solar flare to target the Earth in decades.

Its arrival at about 0700 GMT means it arrived far faster than expected, travelling at a speed of about 8 million kilometres per hour. The earliest traces had been expected at 1800 GMT.

The good news, according to Paal Brekke, Deputy Project Scientist on the Sun-observing satellite SOHO, is that the storm caused by the impact of the flare appeared to weaken quickly.

This is probably because the particles have a northward-pointing magnetic component, he says. "If they have a magnetic field pointing south, we know it interacts more violently with the Earth's magnetosphere," he says. "So we were quite lucky."

The flare's burst of X-rays was so bright it overloaded the detector on NASA's SOHO satellite, causing horizontal artifacts (Image: SOHO)

The news will come as a relief to power grid and satellite operators, both of whom had been preparing for the storm. The fluctuations caused in the magnetic field can affect electronic systems and power grids by inducing currents in conductors.

Geomagnetic storms can also affect high-frequency radio communications and satellite navigation systems.

The flare had already caused the European Space Agency to shut down instruments aboard some of its space-based probes and telescopes, including XMM and Integral. The Mars Express spacecraft also had to switch to using gyroscopes for stabilisation, because the flare made it impossible to use distant stars as reference points.

This should not affect its mission, says Mike McKay, director of the Mars Express and Smart 1 missions, at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany. But the flare will leave some lasting effects, he says: "Solar arrays tend to age a little bit quicker."

The speed at which the flare arrived is just the latest unusual event in a turbulent week on the Sun. The solar cycle peaked in 2000, which is when most activity was expected. But two massive sunspots and a number of flares have been seen in the last seven days.

[_Jim]

Giant solar flare slams into Earth

So far, the only result I've seen is it has ravaged the HF spectrum - yesterday I was copying many different 10 M FM repeaters and QSOs on 10 M AM around 29.010 MHz whereas today it's dead!

[Blue_Spark]

No AU on 6 or 2M this morning. Looks like the good stuff was in the middle of the night for us. Rain since last night so would not have seen anything anyway. Hi latitude AU right now, so doesn't do us much good. One of the highest readings from CANOPUS that I can recall now.
de 6M op in CN85

[finnman69]

I have noticed anything happening other than my skin sliding off.

[Marie Antoinette]

Coronal Mass Ejection

I just like saying it out loud, it makes me feel sooo bad ;-D

[Redcloak]

Oh... Well that certainly explains the loud "BOI-OI-OI-OI-OI-OINNNNNGGGG" I heard last night.

[MrConfettiMan]

Why does this sound Clintonesque?

No, no, no. You're thinking of Premature Coronal Mass Ejaculation.

[Dixie Pirate]

Just DAMN! That's terrible! I feel for you folks out there in fireland. Stay safe.

[EternalVigilance]

Am I logged in?

[GalaxieFiveHundred]

Just doin' my job folks.

[RightWhale]

Here at aurora central, there was some diffuse red glow and a lot of dim, diffuse green, but not what one would call an interesting auroral display. Seen better, many times.

[Publius6961]

BUMP

[Publius6961]

This may be a good place to ask.
What is is that travels from the sun and takes 8 to 12 hours to reach the earth and cause disruptions, knock out satellites, etc?

There is a dearth of information about the phenomenon, other than it follows sunspots, prominences, coronal discharges, whatever...

[G L Tirebiter]

Uh oh. That big RED arrow looks like trouble for folks in Colorado...

[governsleastgovernsbest]

We've got to find this Colonel Mass Ejection and stop him!