Fire in the Sky

Great Solar Storm of 1849

250 years ago fire lit up the skies of our predecessors world, turning night into day, wreaking havoc with the technology of the time. Now, in the closing days of the year 2009 and as we roll inexorably closer to New Year 2010 we stand on a pinnacle between worlds, a centre-point between past and future. As in the year 2349, if humankind still inhabits the Earth, they, the children of the future will see once again that fire that will light up the skies. Because when 500 years of our time has passed the Great Solar Storm of 1849 is set to return to that future world…

This spectacular event was caused by a period of intense solar activity….

London saw curtains of light dancing in the skies above the Houses of Parliament. In Cheshire newsprint could be read by its light. In Manchester people throughout the city had curtains of fire.

· Two massive solar events; Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) sent millions of tonnes of supercharged solar gases hurtling towards Earth at 2,000+ km/sec. Arriving in less than 18 hours they struck with enough force to throw our protective magnetic field into chaotic fits.

· This magnetic disruption caused the readings on worldwide scientific instruments recording changes in Earth’s magnetic field to go completely off their scales. The communication system of the time became inoperable.

Night became day in the Northern Hemisphere and the resulting lights in the sky were reported by half the world as far South as the Caribbean and Venezuela……

The Coronal Mass Ejections may have been triggered by flare events resulting in a massive ejection of plasma from the Sun’s atmosphere (Corona)

Since we live in an electronic society the effects on modern society would be disastrous.

· Satellites would fail and potentially fall out of orbit

Electricity grids would be overwhelmed
Country-wide blackouts
Global communication systems would simply stop working

Following the Solar Storm the magnetic field was so distorted and overwhelmed that the Northern Lights appeared all over the planet. This happens every 500 years or so. Next Storm expected in the year 2349.