The solar storm of 2012 that almost sent us back to a post-apocalyptic Stone Age

While you didn’t see it, feel it, or even read about it in the newspapers, Earth was almost knocked back to the Stone Age on July 23, 2012. It wasn’t some crazed dictator with his finger on the thermonuclear button or a giant asteroid that came close to wiping out civilization as we know it, though — no, what nearly ended us was a massive solar storm. Almost two years ago to the day, our most bounteous and fantastical celestial body — the Sun — kicked out one of the largest solar flares and coronal mass ejections ever recorded. And it missed Earth by a whisker. “If it had hit, we would still be picking up the pieces,” says Daniel Baker, who led the research into the massive solar storm.

The solar storm of 2012 that almost sent us back to a post-apocalyptic Stone Age





Just thought i would bring this article to the attention of ATS.

One has to wonder if a CME will at some point in the not to distant future engulf our beloved Earth? Whether it sends us back to the pre industrial era or fries our planet like an egg its certainly worth our consideration.

How would we fair without our beloved electrical grid and/or internet? Would that necessarily be a bad thing? Can we ever hope to protect against such an event and if so what are the best and most practical ways of doing so?

www.youtube.com...

We can be sent back to the stone age pretty much at any time:

Champ

China has developed a family of variants of 3M-54 designated as YJ-18. Improvements include the extended range for the subsonic version over the original 300 km limit imposed by Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). Additional satellite navigation update to the original inertial guidance of 3M-54 is also added. The most important upgrade, however, is its additional anti-radar role as an Aegis-killer for China. This is achieved by replacing the high explosive warhead of anti-shipping role (AShM) with an electromagnetic pulse warhead that is claimed to be able to take down up to sixty percent of the enemy ship's electronic systems at a range of fifty meters after detonating.

en.wikipedia.org...

Not to diminish the topic here.

But I fear man more than I do 'mother nature'.

a reply to: neo96

This is also very true neo96 but the op is really more about protecting or preventing against one of mother natures destructive forces rather than annihilation due to our own stupidity aka nuclear war. Which given the present political climate i will grant you is becoming more of a distinct possibility every day.

Ban the sun. Ban it or declare war on it.

It would seem that the comment I made earlier was not appropriate, I apologise, as the topic to me seemed identical. My intention was to make OP aware of a thread that seemed to be related.

So the basic question is what can we do to protect ourselves? Stop relying on electronics that are not adequately shielded.
Other than that, we ARE talking about the Sun right? LMAO what could we possibly do to protect ourselves against it if it goes rogue!!!

That's why we have things like EMF shielding and circuit breakers. Maybe some people would be knocked back to the Stone Age. But then again, some people are already there anyway.

a reply to: Jonjonj

The obvious answer would be to depart our planet before such an event took place, if indeed the CME is of the crispy variety. The technology to do so however and even the ability to detect such an event in an acceptable time period is ether so far off the shelf and in the black that is just not a practical solution. All through anything's possible I don't see us coming up with say a planetary shield or it's like.

If however the CME is only going to be responsible for the destruction of our electrical grids and infrastructure I imagine there are indeed ways that we could harden or shield our proprietary equipment. Encasing them in faraday cages is one option but the practicalities of doing so are rather impractical if i do say so.

What about all the nuclear power plants peppering the world? Think those towers will cool themselves and not go critical?

How about the millions upon millions of people extending their lives hooked up to machines, or dependent upon pharmaceuticals? How long will they last?

We are dependent upon the power grid now. If it goes down, we go down with it. I live within 50 miles of a nuclear power plant, and anywhere I might run to - won't stop the acidification of the waters and oceans, or save me from the radiation these 100's of nuclear power plants will spew and be carried about the earth via weather patterns.

~ Cirque

a reply to: andy06shake

Great thread, nice to know how close we came and its chilling that they give a 12% chance of this type of event in the next 10 years.

From what I understand we can protect our grid for the cost of one B1 bomber, but there is no political will to do so.

There are 9 large transformers that control our grid, these transformers are not produced in North America. If these transformers are taken out it would take years before they could be replaced.

If we experience a event like this I think it could take decades or even a century to recover and I think we would fail.

Could the government supply electricity to all the nuclear power plants until the grid is rebuilt?

If the entire Earth is affected, how could we produce enough of these huge transformers and ship and install where they need to be without the grid?

Would the government hold nuclear plant workers indefinitely and would they have the resources necessary to keep these plants from melting down?

If we lost the grid It would end civilization as we know it within hours, how could we recover under such chaos?

Probably best thing that could happen to humanity. Billions would die relieving pressure on earths resources and we would not be shooting each others aircraft down.

To be perfectly honest I wouldn't have minded. I'm secure in my skill set to live in that world.

a reply to: CirqueDeTruth

World wide Fukushima and Chernobyl events and all rather too close to comfort regarding their locations to our population center's and cities. That's going to be one bad day for Mother Earth!

One would have thought "They" would have foreseen that particular conundrum, almost as if we build our own doomsday device with out even trying.

originally posted by: andy06shake
a reply to: CirqueDeTruth

World wide Fukushima and Chernobyl events and all rather too close to comfort regarding their locations to our population center's and cities. That's going to be one bad day for Mother Earth!

One would have thought "They" would have foreseen that particular conundrum, almost as if we build our own doomsday device with out even trying.

Every nuke plant should be built over a mile deep hole so we can just dump the rods in case of emergency and bury it deep in the earth preferable not near a water table.

originally posted by: Blue Shift
That's why we have things like EMF shielding and circuit breakers. Maybe some people would be knocked back to the Stone Age. But then again, some people are already there anyway.

Some countries are better equipped than others against this kind of thing.

Maybe the U.S. has made some progress lately (since here: The Two SHIELD Acts—One for WikiLeaks and One for EMPs?) with installing shielding tech.

But I kind of doubt it.

originally posted by: Blue Shift
That's why we have things like EMF shielding and circuit breakers. Maybe some people would be knocked back to the Stone Age. But then again, some people are already there anyway.

At least half the world's population wouldn't notice.... except that they might notice that the resources they live on/in are not as interesting to the environmental exploiters anymore.

a reply to: andy06shake

Most people are completely unaware of the seriousness of that occurring.
Furthermore, I question the preparedness of our "Leadership" concerning this matter.
The transformers exceed upwards of 1 million each, are produced overseas(in my case),
and there is approximately a 1 year construction/delivery/installation time period.
Logically, in the interests of a nations national security, a fair number of these should be
purchased and stored in advance preferably underground or at least in a Faraday Cage
facility.
Several different configurations should be included in the stock. As a study of regional
grids will provide understanding of the necessary diversity. In a situation such as the OP
has described, it would be a " ground up" repair. Forget about Satellites, as there would no
longer be a "Top Down" structure electronically for the most part. It would be wise to plan
ahead for situations of this nature.

I am going to refrain from even mentioning the social upheaval that these types of events,
either "naturally' occurring or by the hands of mankind will entail.

Great Thread. S&F

We will NEVER get knocked back to the stone age, never.

Let me explain my reasoning. There are 2 distinct differences between the stone age and what will happen "WHEN" we get hit by a large solar flare.

During the stone age people alive then knew how to survive their environment. What will happen when we get hit by a large flare will leave hundreds of millions who can not survive because they lack the knowledge, skills and mind set.

Most of the world population WILL die off due to not having medicine, food delivered to stores, no jobs/cash, no potable water, heat & air conditioning, no land or skills to grow food, no skills to hunt food and violence from societies collapse (whats left of it)

Could be tomorrow, next week, next year or 1000 years from now but sooner or later it will happen.

originally posted by: mwood
We will NEVER get knocked back to the stone age, never.

There has been so much metal won from the ground in the last 100 years that we would never get knocked back to the Stone age too, for that matter. You only have to go to the nearest stop sign to get enough metal to make knives, pots, hooks, traps, combs, etc. to last you for years. They didnt have this only a few hundred years ago. So to be anal about this, it wold be the Iron age. But we also know more about germs than they did then.

I made nearly the same thread a few months ago.

Wasn't much interest then either.