Astronauts Forced To Take Shelter From Violent Solar Storm In Space

Local6 ^ | December 13, 2006

[TheTruthAintPretty]

A violent solar explosion sent a dangerous wave of radiation through space late Tuesday, prompting NASA to order the crews of Discovery and the International Space Station to take shelter overnight, according to Local 6 News partner Florida Today.

The solar flare erupted around 9:40 p.m., unleashing enough radiation to disrupt radio communications on Earth and in orbit while endangering astronauts circling 220 miles above the planet.

[higgmeister]

Hence the "D" layer interference during the day when using HF comms.

SS

INT QRK

[kalee]

ping

[BobS]

I don't have the ref. chart in front of me. Aren't gamma rays about 10^15 Hertz?

[BobS]

"Do you think I might be potentially a little too far south?"

I've seen meteor streaks around 5 A.M. in NW Los Angeles county when I get to work sometimes. One was very bright once. It must have been a big one. If you get up tonight, go out and see. Those I have seen are going in a southwest direction, which makes sense.

[Stallone]

Goebbels Varmink?

[MikeD]

X-Rays are around 10^15 Hz. Gammas are more like 10^20 Hz. They are penetrating suckers. I just know that we had a 1/4-inch tantalum shield ready to fly on New Horizons, but ditched it because it only dropped the gamma flux by 1/3 to 1/2. It wasn't worth the mass hit to fly it...

[GOP_Thug_Mom]

I hope he can use this opportunity to educate his fellow students on how the SUN does the warming of the globe, not us humans...

[Thinkin' Gal]

Where exactly did they "take shelter."

Higher ground.

[djf]

We're supposed to be at a solar minimum now. It is a big deal.

[aculeus]

Where exactly did they "take shelter."

Higher ground.

No closets?

[2Jedismom]

Well, we didn't see any aurora, but the meteor shower was fantastic! We saw about a dozen, in just a few minutes! Sat out in the back yard with blankets.

The first one we saw (the first one for my son, ever) was very impressive! Stretched clear across the sky!

Thanks for the tip, Vinnie!

[Milwaukee_Guy]

The solar flare on 12/13 produced an X3 flare with the following risks associated to this type of event.

---

S 3 Strong
Biological: radiation hazard avoidance recommended for astronauts on EVA; passengers and crew in high-flying aircraft at high latitudes may be exposed to radiation risk.***

Satellite operations: single-event upsets, noise in imaging systems, and slight reduction of efficiency in solar panel are likely.

Other systems: degraded HF radio propagation through the polar regions and navigation position errors likely.

*** High energy particle measurements (>100 MeV) are a better indicator of radiation risk to passenger and crews. Pregnant women are particularly susceptible.

---

The following would be a -worst case- scenario once the flare interacts with the Earth's geomagnetic field. A few years ago a geomagnetic storm did over $15 million (Candian) damge to Ontario's power companies.

---

G 5 Extreme
Power systems: : widespread voltage control problems and protective system problems can occur, some grid systems may experience complete collapse or blackouts. Transformers may experience damage.

Spacecraft operations: may experience extensive surface charging, problems with orientation, uplink/downlink and tracking satellites.

Other systems: pipeline currents can reach hundreds of amps, HF (high frequency) radio propagation may be impossible in many areas for one to two days, satellite navigation may be degraded for days, low-frequency radio navigation can be out for hours, and aurora has been seen as low as Florida and southern Texas (typically 40° geomagnetic lat.)**.

** For specific locations around the globe, use geomagnetic latitude to determine likely sightings (Tips on Viewing the Aurora)

[Vinnie]

Glad you were able to see them.
My son saw 23 in an hour in Pitt. Caught one on camera.
Here, the sky clouded up around sunset and stayed that way through 1am, at which time I went to bed.
Watched the aurora index at a website and didn't see the index go up through 1 am. It might have later.

Maybe tonight.
If I see anything happening I'll send you a PM.

[Irisshlass]

Too funny! LOL

[Zeppelin]

Our puny nukes are nothing compared to the awesome power of the sun.

[BobS]

"X-Rays are around 10^15 Hz. Gammas are more like 10^20 Hz. They are penetrating suckers."

I know. We have a metal X-ray set-up at work. The power level determines the depth of penetration. Is it possible to measure the power level of incoming X-Rays and Gamma Rays in either dBm or Watts?

I only work with things that go up to 50 GHz at 10 dBm max for operational testing. Various types of microwave absorber with either graphite, oxidixed iron powder, etc. attenuate reflections for a specific band. Metal is a mirror in this low region. Also sharp corners. Surface phase.

[BobS]

I saw 2 at work. I went upstairs to the roof at work, which is a test site, about 5:15 AM. Little quick ones. High atmosphere here in L.A. A few years ago, when it was very cold and hazy, I say a very bright one light everything up. That was a big one.

It was like an Angel fly-by to tell me to finish the coffee, put out the ciggie, and do what I am there to do.

[Cedar]

Thanks for that Aurora link. Great photos.

[Carolinamom]

FYI

[Sword_Svalbardt]

Your QTH is?