The predicted solar flare in May 2012.

[Krill]

Apparently NASA have predicted a large solar flare/storm that could knock out the electricity on Earth from anywhere in the region of 4-10 years.

What do you guys think of it? Personally I think it will be great to be knocked down a few pegs and slow the world down a bit. Obviously there will be negative impacts because of it, but on a whole I think it will do us justice.

How would you prep for it? Are people starting to learn more primitive skills?

[happybonzo]

So who do you believe?

http://www.prisonplanet.com/scientist-predicts-ice-age-within-10-years.html - there are plenty of other eferences to this event on the www but this was the first one I found

[Ashley Cawley]

Apparently NASA have predicted a large solar flare/storm that could knock out the electricity on Earth from anywhere in the region of 4-10 years.. What do you guys think of it? I'll have to add a double-layer to my tin-foil hat now! ;)

There's an interesting article about Solar Flares here: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2008/06may_carringtonflare/

Here's an excerpt:


"More than 35 years ago, I began drawing the attention of the space physics community to the 1859 flare and its impact on telecommunications," says Louis J. Lanzerotti, retired Distinguished Member of Technical Staff at Bell Laboratories and current editor of the journal Space Weather. He became aware of the effects of solar geomagnetic storms on terrestrial communications when a huge solar flare on August 4, 1972, knocked out long-distance telephone communication across Illinois. That event, in fact, caused AT&T to redesign its power system for transatlantic cables. A similar flare on March 13, 1989, provoked geomagnetic storms that disrupted electric power transmission from the Hydro Québec generating station in Canada, blacking out most of the province and plunging 6 million people into darkness for 9 hours; aurora-induced power surges even melted power transformers in New Jersey. In December 2005, X-rays from another solar storm disrupted satellite-to-ground communications and Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation signals for about 10 minutes. That may not sound like much, but as Lanzerotti noted, "I would not have wanted to be on a commercial airplane being guided in for a landing by GPS or on a ship being docked by GPS during that 10 minutes."

I remember hearing on some Science program that a solar flare in our history took out our Telegraph system and navigation over the seas, a quick Google shows that NASA confirms this:

An event in 1859 caused major disruptions to the US telegraph system. In 1989 a solar storm caused the power-grid in Quebec to fail.Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7837036/Nasa-solar-flare-space-storm-warning-a-British-scientist-writes.html

[Ashley Cawley]

It's an very interesting natural phenomenon that I think has more of a chance of causing us some grief than a lot of other end of the world type scenarios.

[happybonzo]

We're all doomed :)

[Ben Casey]

I wondered why my fillings ahd fallen out :D

[jus_young]

If it hits us that bad how are we going to cope with not being able to spend endless hours on this forum?

[JEEP]

Better stack up on gear and supplies then....

....wait.... did that a long time ago :D

[RobbC]

Imagine how many posts there would be on the 'what have you bought now' thread after that amount of time;)

Robb

[Metal mug]

If it hits us that bad how are we going to cope with not being able to spend endless hours on this forum?Where will I be able to start pointless threads!?!?! :shocked:

[Krill]

An ice age would happen because of lack of sun spots. The last scenario was " Little Ice Age " back in the 1600's that lasted decades.

Interesting how everyone's going on about global warming and how it will kill us, when quite the opposite is the most likely scenario to finish us or atleast diminish our population.

We may be heading into a second "Maunder Minimum" which coincided with the last "Little Ice Age" from the late Dark Ages through around the middle of the Civil War, where colder temps caused vast changes in civilizations and cultures, brought about disease outbreaks, famines, and various other catastrophes, and likely stopped the early European colonization of the Americas by some 400 to 500 years.

[Metal mug]

We may be heading into a second "Maunder Minimum" which coincided with the last "Little Ice Age" from the late Dark Ages through around the middle of the Civil War, where colder temps caused vast changes in civilizations and cultures, brought about disease outbreaks, famines, and various other catastrophes, and likely stopped the early European colonization of the Americas by some 400 to 500 years. Better get out the gas masks.

[Martin]

Good job I just bought a down coat. :)

Martin

[Jack Russell]

Don't get the problem............ We nick Phil's coracle, pal up with paul s, and bigzee for cooking facilities, and all head for Denmark to hole up in Jakob's bushcraft HQ with A and B for evening entertainment - shimples!!!!!

[Ashley Cawley]

Don't get the problem............ We nick Phil's coracle, pal up with paul s, and bigzee for cooking facilities, and all head for Denmark to hole up in Jakob's bushcraft HQ with A and B for evening entertainment - shimples!!!!!
Sounds like a plan T^

[Raven]

i'm in, how many does phil's coracle hold anywho?

[GwersyllaCnau]

i'm in, how many does phil's coracle hold anywho?

Count me in too, I still got a canoe I built that has held 7

[Metal mug]

Count me in too, I still got a canoe I built that has held 7 Is it the bright orange one? - It might deflect the solar flare. :)

[GwersyllaCnau]

I could bring the bright orange one too if needed lol