Indian Thought Latest News & Views
New Delhi: On Saturday night, something happened from Ladakh to the skies of America, which is surprising everyone. It was as if nature had created its own rainbow, or played Holi. Pictures and videos of the sky bathed in colorful lights are viral on social media. What miracle is this? This is the question on everyone’s lips. Actually this is a solar storm. (Solar storms ) After all, how does this storm arise in the depths of space, in whose colorful light the entire sky is bathed? To know this, we spoke to renowned science writer Deven Mewadi. Mewari, who is expert in explaining science in a very easy and interesting way, unveiled this mystery of space. Understand this complete wonder of space in his own words…
Solar storms are directly related to the sun. The outermost layer of the Sun, which looks like a shining saucer, has a temperature of about 5 thousand degrees Celsius. Whereas the temperature at the center of the Sun is many times higher, up to about 15 million degrees Celsius.
Everyone knows that the sun is a ball of gases. Nothing is solid in it. It can be compared to a nuclear reactor to some extent. But here the process is of nuclear fusion. The Sun contains 92 percent hydrogen gas. Due to immense heat, hydrogen atoms keep breaking and helium keeps getting formed. Unlimited energy is released in the breaking of atoms and formation of helium. This energy spreads all around, providing heat to the earth.
Four crore tons of energy is released in one second
Solar flares or solar flames arise during this entire process. This is similar to the way bubbles rise and burst while making halwa in a pan. Similarly, this process continues in the sun. Solar flames come forward. Immense heat comes out of these flames. You can estimate this from the fact that 40 million tons of energy is released in one second.
These solar flames that arise in the process of converting hydrogen into helium are millions of kilometers long. It is very interesting that solar flares increase every 11 years. It is surprising that this incident happens approximately every 11 years. This is an unsolved mystery of space. The effect of these flares, i.e. the intensity of increasing flames, also affects our communication system. Its effect is seen on the working of communication satellites. It is due to the brightness of these solar flares that colorful lights are seen in the sky.
Fear of disruptions in Earth’s communication network
According to news agency ANI, in this important astronomical event, a series of solar flares and coronal mass ejections have dazzled the sky. Its impact is probably reaching far into the Northern Hemisphere. However, even though it is like the breathtaking light of early morning, there is growing concern that it could cause disruptions in the Earth’s communication networks.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center, this type of rare solar storm was seen in October 2003. This was an important astronomical event. The current solar storm is the second largest after the “Halloween Storm” of October 2003. There was a blackout in Sweden due to Halloween. Due to this, the grid in South Africa also came to a standstill.
The most powerful solar storm hit the Earth in 1859. It was named the Carrington Event. Due to this storm the communication lines were completely damaged.
Transformer not able to withstand such solar phenomenon
According to a CNN report, scientist Bill Nye has expressed apprehension about the impact of solar storm on our technology-dependent society. He emphasized the risks posed by our heavy dependence on electricity and electronics, comparing it to the Carrington Event of 1859. He also outlined the possible impacts if disruptions arise.
Despite existing measures to protect against solar storms, Bill Nye cautioned that all infrastructure, particularly transformers, may not be strong enough to withstand the impact of such a solar event, leaving room for unexpected complications. .
