Solar Flares Will Disrupt GPS In 2011

New Scientist ^ | 9-29-2006 | Jeff Hecht

[blam]

Solar flares will disrupt GPS in 2011

14:29 29 September 2006
NewScientist.com news service
Jeff Hecht

Navigation, power and communications systems that rely on GPS satellite navigation will be disrupted by violent solar activity in 2011, research shows.

A study reveals Global Positioning System receivers to be unexpectedly vulnerable to bursts of radio noise produced by solar flares, created by explosions in the Sun's atmosphere.

When solar activity peaks in 2011 and 2012, it could cause widespread disruption to aircraft navigation and emergency location systems that rely heavily on satellite navigation data.

Particularly intense solar activity occurs roughly every 11 years due to cyclic changes to the Sun's magnetic field – a peak period known as the solar maximum.

Solar flares send charged particles crashing into the outer fringes of the Earth's atmosphere at high velocity, generating auroras and geomagnetic storms.

Radio noise

Charged particles from solar flares also produce intense bursts of radio noise, which peak in the 1.2 and 1.6 gigahertz bands used by GPS. Normally, radio noise in these bands is very low, so receivers can easily pick up weak signals from orbiting satellites.

In 2005, however, Cornell University graduate student Alessandro Cerruti discovered a puzzling failure in GPS reception while operating a receiver at Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico.

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Aren't they just beautiful...

I always watch shows about the sun, fascinating.

[backhoe]

Aren't they just beautiful... I always watch shows about the sun, fascinating.

An old ( and favorite ) post of mine:

The Sun has a Thousand Faces--- Thread 3

[HEY4QDEMS]

LORAN is in the process of a rather impressive upgrade under the current proposal

I heard something about this last fall. Isn't it strange how quickly things change, I can remember about eight or so years ago when the plans were on the table to phase out LORAN by 2000, then it got extended to 2005 and then all of a sudden bam it's being upgraded.

My friend's dad captains a charter boat out of P-Town, we call him Cptn. Nasty, and he say's the Afgan and Iraq war is the reason, that some military ships experienced problems with there GPS equipment and used LORAN as a backup and it got the job done.

He has both systems on his boat, he prefers GPS only because it's compatable with the Rutgers thermal NAV charts in real time.

[19th LA Inf]

Wild - - The Rolls Royce of theodolites. I used one several times when I was working, including carrying one as a seatmate on an airliner. Airport security guys were dazzled by it. Now I have to get by with my old Gurley transit, same as the one we used in surveying class in 1947. I don't think they make them any more, but I sent them an e-mail with my serial number and in 15 minutes got back an answer that it was made in 1950. And 50 more years from now it will probably still be in working order - - made in USA.

[Mr_Moonlight]

Man, it took 26 posts before the first "Bush's Fault" :)

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Bookmarked. I know how I'm going to spend the night. ;-) Thanks.

[backhoe]

Thanks for looking- those observatory links should take you to real-time ( and historical ) pictures- the Sun has a thousand faces...

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Bookmark this link:

http://spaceweather.com

for current info on Solar Flares, Aurora and other interesting space and atmospheric phenomena.
For example:

"AURORA WATCH: Northern sky watchers, be alert for auroras tonight. A solar wind stream is approaching Earth, and it might cause a mild geomagnetic storm when it arrives on Sept 29th or 30th."

And info we all need to know before we step outside!

"SOLAR WIND
speed: 280.5 km/s
density: 10.3 protons/cm3

And for the end of the world types:

"Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.

On 29 Sep 2006 there were 803 known Potentially
Hazardous Asteroids "

Amaze your friends, and be prepared for any eventuallity!

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I clicked on the X22 flare in '02. Beautiful. I'm gonna head over there again for a few hours. Anything about the sun...I'll love it. Thanks again.

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Sorry...'01

[Democrap]

Yeah it will be time to get the QRP rig and the 10 MTR stuff out of the closet and back in the shack. By then I'll have to relearn the code HIHI.

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Sorry again, eventually I'll leave. It is real time. I saw the date as Sept. '06

[No Truce With Kings]

"Navigation, power and communications systems that rely on GPS satellite navigation will be disrupted by violent solar activity in 2011, research shows."

Studies done, no doubt, by the same folks that brought you Y2K . . .

And in another couple of years we will see 2011 survival kits go on sale. Get yours early!

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Solar week: October 2-6

http://www.solarweek.org/

[dfwgator]

73s and good DXing.

[Focault's Pendulum]

"AURORA WATCH: Northern sky watchers, be alert for auroras tonight. A solar wind stream is approaching Earth, and it might cause a mild geomagnetic storm when it arrives on Sept 29th or 30th."

How far north do you have to be? I live in New Jersey and hope it won't be visible this far south. Because if it is' somebody in Trenton will figure out a way to tax me for looking at.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

I don't think you have to worry. If you lived in Minnesota, then you'd have to worry!

[Nowhere Man]

LORAN is in the process of a rather impressive upgrade under the current proposal. Stunning accuracy for 100KHz signal. To contain massive data in the pulse "manipulations". All with land-based unmanned XMTR stations that won't be the expected 1st thing taken out in a heavy conflict, like most of the GPS birds will most certainly be. Portables stations can be reset in hours instead of years to put up a new sat. Not line of sight, 100KHz is. Cheap, reliable, accurate, rapid XMTR replenishment, backup nav.

I hope the USCG approves it or the DOD picks it up.

I also remember when they had the Omega navigation system that ran from 9 to 16 kilocycles, very longwave signals but that was phased out several years ago. I remember when I was a kid, they also used Loran-A in the 1900 kilocycle range, just above the AM band into the 160 meter amateur radio band and many amateurs that were near the coasts had power and frequency restrictions on the use of the 160 meter band because of it. I remember Loran-A's raspy buzz that can via skip every night when I tuned my shortwave radio. I think they finally put it out to pasture around 1982 or 1983. Come to think of it, I think the sound effect for "The Hypnotoad" in "Futurama" when he turned on his hyponsis was the sound from the Loran'A's signal or at least it sure sounds like that. I've been scouring the Web for a recording of Loran-A to no avail.

[GATOR NAVY]

I'm good to go