Solar storm not immediate threat

By N. Arun Kumar | Deccan Chronicle

Dismissing Nasa’s warning against solar radiation storms, Indian scientists and amateur astronomers said the solar storm might not create any major damage to human beings as it’s not directed towards Ear­th, but it could cause damage if the storm continued.

Dr P. Iyamperumal, executive director, Tamilnadu Science and Technology Centre, Chennai, said solar cycle would reach its peak every 11 years and this year being its peak one could witness sunspots to appear and disappear.

Asked about the effect of solar storm on satellites, the executive director noted that if the intensity increases satellite operators might decide to close the solar panels, which powers the satellites.

Nasa scientists have forecast a major ‘threat’ to Earth. A strong solar radiation storm has erupted from the Sun and it will affect passengers and crew in high altitude flights owing to increasing radiation exposure, they have warned.

Nasa warns of Solar storm

Nasa has also cautioned that the emission of high-energy particles (protons) from the Sun may affect all satellite systems. Nasa’s space weather prediction centre located at Boulder in Colorado, USA, has come out with a bulletin according to which the solar radiation storm has reached S3 (strong) level at 3 am UTC (8.30 am IST) on May 23. A solar storm or solar flare occurs when magnetic energy that had built up in the solar atm­o­sphere is sudd­enly released with high bursts of energy.

Radiation is emitted across the entire electromagnetic spe­ctr­um from the radio waves at the long wavelength end, through optical emission to x-rays and gamma rays at the short wavelength end. The amo­unt of en­ergy released is equivalent of millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs exploding at the same time.

The bulletin also pointed out that the expanding cloud from coronal mass ejection appears to deliver a glancing blow to Earth’s magnetic field. According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecast models, the impact will be more than double the solar wind plasma density around Earth and boost the solar wind speed to about 600 km per second, which will be a treat to sky watchers as they can look at Sun’s aurora.

Spaceweather.com, one of the reputed websites for spaceweather, says  S3 class solar storm will put passengers in commercial jets at high latitudes at risk as they may receive low-level radiation exposure (approximately one chest x-ray), satellite operations will be affected with noise in imaging systems, and slight reduction of efficiency in solar panel. The storm can also degrade high frequency (HF) radio propagation through polar regions and navigation position errors can also be expected.
Don’t worry, say Indian scientists

Dismissing NASA’s warning, Indian scientists and amateur astronomers said the present solar storm might not create any major damage to human beings as it’s not directed towards the earth, but it could cause damage if the storm continues.

Speaking to DC on Thur­sday, Dr P. Iyamperumal, executive director, Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Centre in Chennai says that solar cycle would reach its peak every 11 years and this year being its peak one can witness sunspots to appear and disappear. “As the strong magnetic field around the Earth attracts charged particles they will get trapped in it leaving no space for them to enter the Earth to cause damage,” he explained.

Pointing out that the Sun emits billions of tonnes of charged particles during solar storm, Dr Iyamper­umal says that only one billion of the tonnes of charged particles reach Earth’s atmosphere. “As we receive a negligible level of radiation and also its not directed towards the earth we are safe. Not all air travellers will get affected  and only those space travellers who fly out of the Earth’s atmosphere might get to see the impact,” he added.

Asked about the effect of solar storm on satellites, the executive director noted that if the intensity increases satellite operators might decide to close the solar panels, which powers the satellites.

Adding to Dr Iyampe­rumal’s expert opinion, K. Rajesh, an HAM radio enthusiast and who tracks solar storms on a regular basis, says that solar storm block radio signals and as airline pilots still use high frequency (HF) radio signals for communication with air traffic controllers solar storms would turn out to be a great threat for their contact with ground station during the flight.

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