The Space Thread
- Thread starter Gomez Adams
- Start date
Yep. And if Mars weren't so small and/or had a larger moon, it would have kept going. I still think that's what happened: the core worked very much the same as the earths and generated magnetic fields like earth, just not as strong, so it was able to hold on to its atmosphere and water.
But as the eons went by and it didn't have the mass and pulling of a good sized moon it slowly cooled off, the protective fields degenerated, it started to lose its atmosphere and it just turned into a runaway cooling down effect that killed it.
But as the eons went by and it didn't have the mass and pulling of a good sized moon it slowly cooled off, the protective fields degenerated, it started to lose its atmosphere and it just turned into a runaway cooling down effect that killed it.
A CARRINGTON-CLASS SUNSPOT: Sunspot AR3664 has grown so large, it now rivals the great Carrington sunspot of 1859. To illustrate their similarity, we've added Carrington's famous sketch (to scale) to a NASA photo of today's sun:
Sprawling almost 200,000 km from end to end, AR3664 is 15 times wider than Earth. You can see it through ordinary eclipse glasses with no magnification at all. Moreover, it is easy to project an image of this sunspot onto the sidewalk or a white screen just as Carrington did in the 19th century.
Carrington's sunspot is famous because in August and Sept. 1859 it emitted a series of intense solar flares and CMEs. The resulting geomagnetic storms set fire to telegraph offices and sparked auroras from Cuba to Hawaii. The "Carrington Event" has since become a touchstone of space weather in pop culture, with recent headlines stoking fears of an "internet apocalypse" if it repeats.
Indeed, it could repeat. Studies suggest that Carrington-class storms occur once every 40 to 60 years, so we're overdue. CMEs currently en route to Earth will not cause a new Carrington Event; they are puny compared to the CMEs of 1859. Nevertheless, it would be wise to keep an eye on this growing active region while Earth is in its strike zone. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
Sprawling almost 200,000 km from end to end, AR3664 is 15 times wider than Earth. You can see it through ordinary eclipse glasses with no magnification at all. Moreover, it is easy to project an image of this sunspot onto the sidewalk or a white screen just as Carrington did in the 19th century.
Carrington's sunspot is famous because in August and Sept. 1859 it emitted a series of intense solar flares and CMEs. The resulting geomagnetic storms set fire to telegraph offices and sparked auroras from Cuba to Hawaii. The "Carrington Event" has since become a touchstone of space weather in pop culture, with recent headlines stoking fears of an "internet apocalypse" if it repeats.
Indeed, it could repeat. Studies suggest that Carrington-class storms occur once every 40 to 60 years, so we're overdue. CMEs currently en route to Earth will not cause a new Carrington Event; they are puny compared to the CMEs of 1859. Nevertheless, it would be wise to keep an eye on this growing active region while Earth is in its strike zone. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
Our huge advantage is we have a satellite that can see them coming in advance so we can shut our satellites and other critical electronics infrastructure down before they hit.
I can't recall, but I THINK it gives us a few hours advance notice.
Our electronics are also more protected then open electrical circuits used to be.
GET READY FOR A 'CANNIBAL CME': Multiple CMEs are heading for Earth (see the movie below). A new NOAA forecast model suggests that three of them could merge to form a potent "Cannibal CME." Cannibal CMEs form when fast-moving CMEs overtake slower CMEs in front of them. Internal shock waves created by such CME collisions do an good job sparking geomagnetic storms when they strike Earth's magnetic field. Indeed, NOAA is now predicting a severe storm on May 11th when the Cannibal arrives. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH: This weekend's geomagnetic storm watch has been upgraded from G2 (Moderate) to G4 (Severe). Why? Because giant sunspot AR3664 keeps hurling CMEs toward Earth. Following today's X2.2 solar flare, there are now at least 4 storm clouds heading our way. See how many you can count in this 24-hour movie from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory:
A NOAA forecast model predicts that two or three of these CMEs could merge to form a Cannibal CME, which will strike Earth during the early hours of May 11th. Cannibal CMEs are notoriously good at sparking strong geomagnetic storms and low latitude auroras. In fact, NOAA is now predicting a G4-class (Severe) storm on May 11th when the Cannibal arrives.
SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH: This weekend's geomagnetic storm watch has been upgraded from G2 (Moderate) to G4 (Severe). Why? Because giant sunspot AR3664 keeps hurling CMEs toward Earth. Following today's X2.2 solar flare, there are now at least 4 storm clouds heading our way. See how many you can count in this 24-hour movie from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory:
A NOAA forecast model predicts that two or three of these CMEs could merge to form a Cannibal CME, which will strike Earth during the early hours of May 11th. Cannibal CMEs are notoriously good at sparking strong geomagnetic storms and low latitude auroras. In fact, NOAA is now predicting a G4-class (Severe) storm on May 11th when the Cannibal arrives.
I was of the same opinion until...
www.swpc.noaa.gov
Coronal Mass Ejections | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center
SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM--NOW!! The first of six CMEs hurled toward Earth by giant sunspot AR3664 hit Earth's magnetic field on May 10th. The impact at 1645 UT jolted magnetometers around the world (e.g., 108 nT in Boulder CO) and sparked a severe (G4-class) geomagnetic storm underway now. More CMEs are following close behind (see below) and their arrival could extend the storm into the weekend. Stay tuned!
