This episode of SpaceTime explores the recent surge in solar activity, including the largest solar flare of the year and the most intense geomagnetic storm in two decades. Massive Solar Flare and Its Implications
We delve into the details of a powerful X 2.7 class solar flare that erupted from a newly active sunspot region, AR14087. Although the flare was not initially directed towards Earth, its rotation has now positioned it directly in our path. We discuss the mechanics of solar flares, their classification, and the potential impacts of such events on our planet, including disruptions to communication systems, satellite operations, and even power grids. The Gannon Storm: A Historic Geomagnetic Event
The episode highlights the Gannon Storm, a severe geomagnetic storm that struck Earth on May 10, 2024. Coinciding with a space weather exercise, this event caused significant disruptions, including high voltage power line failures and rerouted flights due to radiation exposure. We analyze its effects on the atmosphere, satellites, and even the ionosphere, revealing insights into how such storms can impact modern technology. Ancient Solar Storms and Their Modern Implications
In a fascinating segment, we discuss a groundbreaking study that identifies the strongest solar storm ever recorded, dating back to 12350 BCE. This ancient event, significantly more intense than any modern storm, provides invaluable data for understanding solar activity and its potential risks to contemporary infrastructure. Science Robert: Long Work Hours and Brain Changes
We also touch on a new study revealing how long working hours could alter brain structures, potentially affecting memory and emotional regulation.Join us as we unpack these cosmic phenomena and their implications for life on Earth and beyond.
www.spacetimewithstuartgary.com (https://www.spacetimewithstuartgary.com/)
✍️ Episode References
Journal of Occupational Environmental Medicine
https://journals.lww.com/joem/Pages/default.aspx (https://journals.lww.com/joem/Pages/default.aspx)
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/spacetime-space-astronomy--2458531/support (https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/spacetime-space-astronomy--2458531/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss) .
00:00 Solar flares are powerful blasts of energy erupting from sunspots
10:30 May 2024 was the biggest geomagnetic storm in over 20 years
14:29 New study reveals strongest solar event ever recorded, rewriting science on space weather
18:23 A new study claims people who work long hours could have altered brain structures
Episode link: https://play.headliner.app/episode/27236573?utm_source=youtube
00:00:00 --> 00:00:03 This is Spaceime Series 28 episode 61
00:00:03 --> 00:00:06 for broadcast on the 21st of May
00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 2025. Coming up on Spaceime, the biggest
00:00:09 --> 00:00:11 solar flare this year, the biggest
00:00:11 --> 00:00:14 geomagnetic storm in the past 20 years,
00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 and the most extreme solar storm known
00:00:17 --> 00:00:19 to have hit the Earth. All that and more
00:00:19 --> 00:00:23 coming up on Spaceime.
00:00:23 --> 00:00:27 Welcome to Spaceime with Stuart Garry.
00:00:27 --> 00:00:34 [Music]
00:00:42 --> 00:00:44 Well, we've just experienced the largest
00:00:44 --> 00:00:46 solar flare so far this year, producing
00:00:46 --> 00:00:49 an X2.7 class event. The massive
00:00:49 --> 00:00:51 eruption emanated from a newly appeared
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 active sunspot region cataloged as
00:00:53 --> 00:00:56 AR14087.
00:00:56 --> 00:00:58 It's one of two X-class flares and
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 several smaller M-class events all
00:01:00 --> 00:01:02 coming from the same region. Now,
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04 luckily, they weren't pointed directly
00:01:04 --> 00:01:06 towards the Earth, leaving the planet on
00:01:06 --> 00:01:08 the outer edge of the strike zone. But,
00:01:08 --> 00:01:10 of course, that's now changed as this
00:01:10 --> 00:01:12 active region has now rotated to
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 directly face the Earth. The event
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 happened as the sun reaches solar
00:01:17 --> 00:01:20 maximum, the climax of its 11-year solar
00:01:20 --> 00:01:22 cycle. Solar flares are powerful blasts
00:01:22 --> 00:01:25 of energy erupting from sunspots on the
00:01:25 --> 00:01:28 sun's surface. Sunspots are slightly
00:01:28 --> 00:01:30 cooler regions on the sun's surface, the
00:01:30 --> 00:01:31 photosphere caused by magnetic field
00:01:32 --> 00:01:34 lines from deep inside the sun, breaking
00:01:34 --> 00:01:36 through the surface and looping out into
00:01:36 --> 00:01:39 space. Now, because the sun is fluid
00:01:39 --> 00:01:41 rather than solid, different latitudes
00:01:41 --> 00:01:43 rotate at different rates, and this
00:01:43 --> 00:01:45 causes the magnetic field lines to twist
00:01:45 --> 00:01:48 and snap. When they reconnect, a process
00:01:48 --> 00:01:50 called magnetic reconnection, it
00:01:50 --> 00:01:51 triggers pathful explosions near the
00:01:51 --> 00:01:54 surface known as solar flares. Solar
00:01:54 --> 00:01:56 flares are classified according to their
00:01:56 --> 00:01:59 strength. The smallest ones are B-class,
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 that's followed by C, then M, and the
00:02:01 --> 00:02:04 largest AXclass flares. It's similar to
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 the RTER scale used for earthquakes,
00:02:06 --> 00:02:08 with each letter representing a 10-fold
00:02:08 --> 00:02:11 logarithmic increase in energy output.
00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 So, an X-class flare is 10 times as
00:02:13 --> 00:02:16 strong as an M-class flare and 100 times
00:02:16 --> 00:02:18 as strong as a C-class flare. Within
00:02:18 --> 00:02:20 each letter class, there's a finer scale
00:02:20 --> 00:02:24 from 1 to 9. C-class flares are too weak
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 to noticeably affect the Earth. But
00:02:26 --> 00:02:28 M-class flares can cause brief radio
00:02:28 --> 00:02:30 blackouts at the poles and minor
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 radiation storms that could endanger
00:02:32 --> 00:02:35 people in space. Although X is the last
00:02:35 --> 00:02:37 letter, these flares can have more than
00:02:37 --> 00:02:39 10 times the power of an X1 class, so
00:02:39 --> 00:02:43 they can go much higher than an X9. The
00:02:43 --> 00:02:45 most powerful flare on record was back
00:02:45 --> 00:02:48 in 2003 during the last solar maximum.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:49 In fact, it was so powerful it
00:02:49 --> 00:02:51 overloaded the sensors measuring it.
00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 They cut out at X17, and the flare was
00:02:54 --> 00:02:57 later estimated to be about an X45.
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 A powerful X-class flare like that can
00:02:59 --> 00:03:01 create long lasting radiation storms
00:03:01 --> 00:03:03 which can harm and even destroy
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 satellites, give airline passengers
00:03:05 --> 00:03:07 flying near the poles dose of radiation
00:03:07 --> 00:03:09 scramble communication and navigation
00:03:09 --> 00:03:12 systems and even overload power grids
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 causing widespread blackouts on the
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 ground. The most powerful solar flares
00:03:16 --> 00:03:19 can trigger chronal mass ejections, huge
00:03:19 --> 00:03:21 blasts of the sun's material, including
00:03:21 --> 00:03:23 protons, electrons, magnetic field, and
00:03:23 --> 00:03:26 helium nuclei. Now, our current solar
00:03:26 --> 00:03:29 cycle number 25 began back in December
00:03:29 --> 00:03:32 2019 and so should be reaching solar max
00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 around now. This is when the sun reaches
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 its most violent phase with lots of
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 sunspot activity and consequently lots
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 of solar flares and coronal mass
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 ejections. A number of sunspots are
00:03:43 --> 00:03:46 predicted to reach a peak of around 115
00:03:46 --> 00:03:48 by July this year, making the current
00:03:48 --> 00:03:50 solar cycle weaker than average and only
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 slightly more active than the previous
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 solar cycle 24.
00:03:54 --> 00:03:56 During each of these roughly 11 year
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 solar cycles, the sun's magnetic field
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 flips in polarity. North pole becomes
00:04:01 --> 00:04:03 south and south pole north. And this
00:04:03 --> 00:04:05 flip occurs when the solar cycle reaches
00:04:05 --> 00:04:07 solar minimum with the next flip
00:04:07 --> 00:04:09 probably occurring around
00:04:09 --> 00:04:13 2030. This is spacetime. Still to come,
00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 the biggest geomagnetic storm in 20
00:04:15 --> 00:04:18 years and the most extreme solar storm
00:04:18 --> 00:04:20 ever known to have hit the earth. All
00:04:20 --> 00:04:24 that and more still to come on
00:04:24 --> 00:04:38 [Music]
00:04:38 --> 00:04:40 Spaceime. While spectacular, the most
00:04:40 --> 00:04:42 recent geomagnetic storm events we've
00:04:42 --> 00:04:44 seen pale into insignificance when
00:04:44 --> 00:04:46 compared to the solar storm that hit the
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 Earth just a year ago, which has now
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 officially been listed as the biggest in
00:04:50 --> 00:04:51
00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 years. Amazingly, that event coincided
00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 with the inaugural space weather
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 tabletop exercise. The exercise was
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 meant to be a training event where
00:05:00 --> 00:05:02 experts could work through realtime
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 ramifications of a major geomagnetic
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 storm, a global disruption to Earth's
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 magnetic field. Now, as we mentioned
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 earlier, geomagnetic storms can decimate
00:05:10 --> 00:05:12 satellites, overload electrical power
00:05:12 --> 00:05:14 grids, and expose astronauts to
00:05:14 --> 00:05:17 dangerous levels of radiation. So,
00:05:17 --> 00:05:19 minimizing the impact of such storms
00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 requires close coordination. And so,
00:05:21 --> 00:05:23 this meeting was a chance for scientists
00:05:23 --> 00:05:26 to practice. But then their simulation
00:05:26 --> 00:05:29 turned into reality. The director of
00:05:29 --> 00:05:30 NASA's space weather program, Jamie
00:05:30 --> 00:05:32 Favorvers, says the plan was to run
00:05:32 --> 00:05:35 through a hypothetical scenario, finding
00:05:35 --> 00:05:37 where existing processes worked and
00:05:37 --> 00:05:39 where they needed improving. But then
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 this hypothetical scenario was
00:05:40 --> 00:05:43 interrupted by the real thing. On May
00:05:43 --> 00:05:47 the 10th, 2024, the first G5 or severe
00:05:47 --> 00:05:48 geomagnetic storm in more than two
00:05:48 --> 00:05:51 decades hit planet Earth. The event
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 named the Ganon storm in memory of the
00:05:53 --> 00:05:55 leading space weather physicist Jennifer
00:05:55 --> 00:05:57 Ganon didn't cause any catastrophic
00:05:57 --> 00:06:00 damages. But a year on key insights into
00:06:00 --> 00:06:02 the Ganon storm are helping scientists
00:06:02 --> 00:06:03 understand and prepare for future
00:06:04 --> 00:06:06 geomagnetic events. The Ganon storm had
00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 effects both on and off our planet. On
00:06:09 --> 00:06:11 the ground, some high voltage power
00:06:11 --> 00:06:13 lines tripped, transformers overheated,
00:06:13 --> 00:06:15 and GPS guided tractors veered off
00:06:16 --> 00:06:17 course in the Midwest United States,
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 further disrupting spring planting that
00:06:20 --> 00:06:22 had already been delayed by heavy rains.
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 In the air, the threat of high radiation
00:06:24 --> 00:06:26 exposure as well as communications and
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 navigation losses forced numerous
00:06:28 --> 00:06:30 transatlantic and trans-pacific flights
00:06:30 --> 00:06:32 to change course. During the storm,
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 Earth's upper atmospheric layer, the
00:06:34 --> 00:06:37 thermosphere, heated to unusually high
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 temperatures. In fact, at 60 km in
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 altitude. The temperature, which
00:06:41 --> 00:06:44 typically peaks at around 650° C,
00:06:44 --> 00:06:46 surpassed over
00:06:46 --> 00:06:49 1°. NASA's global scale observations
00:06:49 --> 00:06:51 of the Lemon Disc or Gold Mission
00:06:51 --> 00:06:53 observed the atmosphere expanding from
00:06:53 --> 00:06:55 the heat generated to create a strong
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 wind that lofted heavy nitrogen
00:06:57 --> 00:07:00 particles much higher into space. Now,
00:07:00 --> 00:07:02 in orbit, the expanded atmosphere
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 increased drag on thousands of
00:07:04 --> 00:07:07 satellites. NASA's ISAT 2 lost altitude
00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 and wound up entering safe mode, while
00:07:09 --> 00:07:11 NASA's Colorado inner radiationbuilt
00:07:11 --> 00:07:14 experiment Cubat was forced to de-orbit
00:07:14 --> 00:07:16 prematurely. Other spacecraft such as
00:07:16 --> 00:07:18 the European Space Agency Sentinel
00:07:18 --> 00:07:20 mission required more power to maintain
00:07:20 --> 00:07:22 their orbital altitude, and they were
00:07:22 --> 00:07:23 forced to perform maneuvers to avoid
00:07:24 --> 00:07:26 collisions with space debris. The storm
00:07:26 --> 00:07:28 also dramatically changed the structure
00:07:28 --> 00:07:30 of the Earth's ionosphere. A dense zone
00:07:30 --> 00:07:32 of the ionosphere that normally covers
00:07:32 --> 00:07:34 the equator at night dipped downwards
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 towards the south pole, forming a sort
00:07:36 --> 00:07:38 of check mark shape and causing a
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40 temporary gap near the equator. The
00:07:40 --> 00:07:42 Ganon storm also rocked Earth's
00:07:42 --> 00:07:44 magnetosphere, magnetic bubble that
00:07:44 --> 00:07:46 surrounds the planet. Data from NASA
00:07:46 --> 00:07:49 missions MMS and thermos Artemus saw
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 giant curling waves of particles and
00:07:51 --> 00:07:53 rolled up magnetic fields along the edge
00:07:53 --> 00:07:56 of the coronal mass ejections. And these
00:07:56 --> 00:07:57 waves were perfectly sized to
00:07:57 --> 00:07:59 periodically dump extra magnetic energy
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 and mass into the magnetosphere upon
00:08:01 --> 00:08:03 impact. In the process, creating the
00:08:03 --> 00:08:05 largest electrical current seen in the
00:08:05 --> 00:08:08 magnetosphere in 20 years. Incoming
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10 energy and particles from the sun also
00:08:10 --> 00:08:12 created two new temporary belts of
00:08:12 --> 00:08:13 energetic particles within the
00:08:13 --> 00:08:15 magnetosphere. These belts formed
00:08:15 --> 00:08:17 between the existing Van Allen radiation
00:08:18 --> 00:08:19 belts which permanently surround the
00:08:19 --> 00:08:22 Earth. The storm also ignited auroral
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 activity around the globe, including at
00:08:24 --> 00:08:25 lower latitudes, where these celestial
00:08:25 --> 00:08:27 light shows are rare. NASA's
00:08:27 --> 00:08:29 aurorasaurus project was flooded with
00:08:29 --> 00:08:31 more than 6 observer reports from
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 over 55 countries on all seven
00:08:34 --> 00:08:36 continents. Photographers helped
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 scientists better understand why the
00:08:38 --> 00:08:40 aurora observed throughout Japan were
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 magenta rather than the typical read in
00:08:42 --> 00:08:44 color. Researchers studied hundreds of
00:08:44 --> 00:08:46 photos and found that the auroray was
00:08:46 --> 00:08:49 surprisingly high, around 1 km above
00:08:49 --> 00:08:52 the ground. That's around 320 km higher
00:08:52 --> 00:08:55 than red auroray typically appear. In a
00:08:55 --> 00:08:56 paper published in the journal
00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 Scientific Reports, the authors found
00:08:58 --> 00:09:00 the peculiar color of the auroray likely
00:09:00 --> 00:09:02 resulted from a mix of red and blue
00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 aurora produced by oxygen and nitrogen
00:09:04 --> 00:09:06 molecules lofted higher than usual as
00:09:06 --> 00:09:09 the Ganon storm heated and expanded the
00:09:09 --> 00:09:11 upper atmosphere. And impacts of the
00:09:11 --> 00:09:13 sun's amped up solar activity didn't end
00:09:13 --> 00:09:16 in Earth's space. The solar region that
00:09:16 --> 00:09:18 sparked the Gaton storm eventually
00:09:18 --> 00:09:19 rotated away from our planet and
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 redirected its outburst towards the
00:09:21 --> 00:09:24 planet Mars. As energetic particles from
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 the sun struck the Martian atmosphere,
00:09:26 --> 00:09:28 NASA's Maven Orbiter watched the aurora
00:09:28 --> 00:09:30 engulf the red planet from May the 14th
00:09:30 --> 00:09:33 through to the 20th and solar particles
00:09:33 --> 00:09:35 overwhelmed the star camera on NASA's
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 Mars Odyssey orbiter, causing the camera
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39 to cut out for almost an hour.
00:09:39 --> 00:09:41 Meanwhile, down on the Martian surface,
00:09:41 --> 00:09:43 images from the navigation cameras on
00:09:43 --> 00:09:45 NASA's Curiosity rover were freckled
00:09:45 --> 00:09:47 with snow, streaks, and specks caused by
00:09:47 --> 00:09:50 the charged particles. Curiosity's
00:09:50 --> 00:09:52 radiation assessment detector recorded
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 the biggest surge of radiation since the
00:09:54 --> 00:09:56 rover landed on the red planet Mars Gale
00:09:56 --> 00:09:59 Crater back in 2012. Now, had astronauts
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 been there, they would have received a
00:10:01 --> 00:10:04 radiation dose of around 8 micro
00:10:04 --> 00:10:06 grays. That's equivalent to some 30
00:10:06 --> 00:10:09 chest X-rays. The Ganon storm spread
00:10:09 --> 00:10:11 Aurora to unusually low latitudes. In
00:10:11 --> 00:10:13 fact, it's been called the best
00:10:13 --> 00:10:15 documented geomagnetic storm in history.
00:10:15 --> 00:10:17 And the data captured during this
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 historic event will continue to be
00:10:18 --> 00:10:21 analyzed for years to come, revealing
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 new lessons about the nature of
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 geomagnetic storms and how best to
00:10:24 --> 00:10:30 weather them. This report from NASA TV.
00:10:30 --> 00:10:34 In May 2024, a spectacular multicolored
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 light show flooded the skies across the
00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 world. These displays are known as the
00:10:39 --> 00:10:42 auroras. They're usually seen near the
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 polar regions, but that May, sky
00:10:44 --> 00:10:46 watchers spotted the glowing lights far
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 from Earth's
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 poles. People were witnessing the
00:10:50 --> 00:10:53 biggest geomagnetic storm in over 20
00:10:53 --> 00:10:56 years. This storm was so intense. It was
00:10:56 --> 00:10:58 the most intense in two decades. This
00:10:58 --> 00:11:00 was one of those large events that we've
00:11:00 --> 00:11:03 been talking about for years. It all
00:11:03 --> 00:11:05 began from this active region on the
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 sun. Active regions are known for having
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 intense magnetic fields and the more
00:11:10 --> 00:11:13 tangled those fields become, the more
00:11:13 --> 00:11:16 likely they are to erupt. We watched the
00:11:16 --> 00:11:19 active region evolve and we thought that
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 this might be something to watch and
00:11:21 --> 00:11:24 might be something active. Eventually,
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 the active region unleashed a chain of
00:11:26 --> 00:11:29 huge solar eruptions directly towards
00:11:29 --> 00:11:33 us. What made it so strong was the fact
00:11:33 --> 00:11:35 that there was so much energy put off by
00:11:35 --> 00:11:37 the sun. It was really great conditions
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40 for the perfect storm. On May 10th, the
00:11:40 --> 00:11:43 eruptions reached Earth, triggering a
00:11:43 --> 00:11:45 global disruption to Earth's magnetic
00:11:45 --> 00:11:49 field, known as a geomagnetic storm. It
00:11:49 --> 00:11:52 was rated a G5, the rarest and strongest
00:11:52 --> 00:11:55 type. The powerful storm pushed auroras
00:11:55 --> 00:11:58 to appear in unusual places like Arizona
00:11:58 --> 00:12:01 in the United States and Perth in
00:12:01 --> 00:12:04 Australia. That energy interacted with
00:12:04 --> 00:12:06 the Earth and created the aurora and
00:12:06 --> 00:12:08 caused all sorts of disturbances that we
00:12:08 --> 00:12:10 felt here on the ground. The storm
00:12:10 --> 00:12:13 caused some high voltage lines to trip
00:12:13 --> 00:12:15 and transformers to overheat.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:18 transatlantic flights rerouted due to
00:12:18 --> 00:12:21 risks of high radiation exposure and
00:12:21 --> 00:12:23 communication and navigation
00:12:23 --> 00:12:25 disruptions. Further up, NASA saw
00:12:25 --> 00:12:28 Earth's upper atmosphere get unusually
00:12:28 --> 00:12:31 hot. The temperature 100 m up in the
00:12:31 --> 00:12:33 thermosphere usually peaks at
00:12:33 --> 00:12:37 1° F, but during the storm, it
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 reached
00:12:38 --> 00:12:42 2° F. The heating caused the
00:12:42 --> 00:12:45 atmosphere to expand which affected
00:12:45 --> 00:12:47 satellites. There were thousands of
00:12:47 --> 00:12:49 satellites that had to move their orbits
00:12:49 --> 00:12:52 because the storm was coming through.
00:12:52 --> 00:12:55 The storm also affected the space beyond
00:12:55 --> 00:12:57 Earth. It created two new temporary
00:12:58 --> 00:13:00 belts of energetic particles around our
00:13:00 --> 00:13:03 planet, adding to Earth's two permanent
00:13:03 --> 00:13:06 ones, which are known as the Van Allen
00:13:06 --> 00:13:08 radiation belts. The particles in these
00:13:08 --> 00:13:11 belts can harm orbiting satellites and
00:13:11 --> 00:13:13 astronauts heading for deep space. So
00:13:13 --> 00:13:16 NASA studies them closely. As the sun
00:13:16 --> 00:13:19 rotated, the active region eventually
00:13:19 --> 00:13:21 moved away from Earth and redirected its
00:13:22 --> 00:13:25 outbursts towards Mars. On Mars, NASA's
00:13:25 --> 00:13:27 Curiosity rover saw solar particles from
00:13:28 --> 00:13:31 the storm. The rover also recorded the
00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 biggest surge of radiation since it
00:13:33 --> 00:13:36 landed in 2012. If an astronaut had been
00:13:36 --> 00:13:38 on the Martian surface, they would have
00:13:38 --> 00:13:40 received a radiation dose equivalent to
00:13:40 --> 00:13:43 30 chess X-rays at
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 once. With spacecraft throughout the
00:13:45 --> 00:13:48 solar system and modern cameras in so
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 many people's pockets, the storm was the
00:13:50 --> 00:13:53 most well doumented in history. There's
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 lots of data. We're able to actually use
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 that data to understand things and
00:13:58 --> 00:14:00 predict more and more how this is going
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 to affect our Earth. Although the storm
00:14:02 --> 00:14:05 passed within days, NASA will continue
00:14:05 --> 00:14:07 to learn from the observations for years
00:14:07 --> 00:14:09 to come, helping us better prepare for
00:14:09 --> 00:14:11 the next big storm. And in that report
00:14:11 --> 00:14:13 from NASA TV, we heard from NASA
00:14:14 --> 00:14:17 helopysicist Kelly Cor. This is
00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 spaceime. Still to come, the most
00:14:19 --> 00:14:21 extreme solar storm ever known to have
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 hit the Earth. And later in the science
00:14:23 --> 00:14:26 report, a new study claims people who
00:14:26 --> 00:14:28 work long hours could have altered brain
00:14:28 --> 00:14:31 structures. All that and more still to
00:14:31 --> 00:14:35 come on
00:14:35 --> 00:14:41 [Music]
00:14:47 --> 00:14:50 Spaceime. New researchers uncovered the
00:14:50 --> 00:14:52 strongest solar event ever recorded in
00:14:52 --> 00:14:54 the process rewriting science's
00:14:54 --> 00:14:56 understanding of space weather and
00:14:56 --> 00:14:59 radiocarbon dating. This new finding
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 expands the timeline and intensity of
00:15:00 --> 00:15:03 known solar activity and sets a new
00:15:03 --> 00:15:05 upper boundary for such solar
00:15:05 --> 00:15:07 phenomenon. The study's authors
00:15:07 --> 00:15:09 discovered an extreme spike in
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 radiocarbon corresponding to the
00:15:11 --> 00:15:15 12 BCE during the dusk of the last
00:15:15 --> 00:15:18 ice age. The study by Celia Gulabeko and
00:15:18 --> 00:15:20 Ilia Uzoskin from the University of Ulo
00:15:20 --> 00:15:22 in Finland utilized their newly
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 developed chemistry climate model which
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 was specifically designed to reconstruct
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 solar particle storms under ancient
00:15:28 --> 00:15:30 global climatic conditions. The model
00:15:30 --> 00:15:32 confirmed that the detected solar event
00:15:32 --> 00:15:35 was approximately 18% stronger than the
00:15:35 --> 00:15:38 notorious year 775 event which until now
00:15:38 --> 00:15:40 had been the strongest solar storm ever
00:15:40 --> 00:15:43 recorded using tree ring archives. Leeno
00:15:43 --> 00:15:45 says that compared to the largest event
00:15:45 --> 00:15:47 in the modern satellite era, which is
00:15:47 --> 00:15:50 the 2005 particle storm, the ancient
00:15:50 --> 00:15:53 12 B.CE event was more than 500
00:15:53 --> 00:15:56 times more intense. Other large known
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 solar particle events occurred around
00:15:58 --> 00:16:04 the years 994, 663 B.CE, 5259 B.CE, and
00:16:04 --> 00:16:07 7176 B.CE. And a few other candidates
00:16:07 --> 00:16:09 are still being investigated. The new
00:16:09 --> 00:16:11 model was verified using wood samples
00:16:11 --> 00:16:13 recently found in the French Alps dating
00:16:13 --> 00:16:17 back some 4 years. Solar particle
00:16:17 --> 00:16:19 storms are rare, but when they occur,
00:16:19 --> 00:16:21 they bombard the earth with an enormous
00:16:21 --> 00:16:24 amount of high energy particles. In
00:16:24 --> 00:16:26 comparison, the famous Carrington solar
00:16:26 --> 00:16:29 storm of 1859 was a different kind of
00:16:29 --> 00:16:31 event and not accompanied by a solar
00:16:31 --> 00:16:33 particle storm. Gulabeno says the
00:16:33 --> 00:16:37 ancient event in 12 B.CE CE is the
00:16:37 --> 00:16:39 only known extreme solar particle event
00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 outside the holene epoch which is the
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 past 12 years of stable warm
00:16:43 --> 00:16:46 climate. With this model, the authors
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 were able to assess the strength,
00:16:47 --> 00:16:49 timing, and terrestrial effects of what
00:16:49 --> 00:16:51 is now the most powerful and extreme
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 solar particle event ever known. Solar
00:16:54 --> 00:16:56 particle storms can greatly enhance the
00:16:56 --> 00:16:58 normal production of cosmogenic isotopes
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 like radiocarbon 14 in the atmosphere,
00:17:00 --> 00:17:02 which are produced by galactic cosmic
00:17:02 --> 00:17:05 rays. Such enhanced production preserved
00:17:05 --> 00:17:07 in annual tree rings serves as a clear
00:17:07 --> 00:17:10 cosmic timestamp, making possible
00:17:10 --> 00:17:13 absolute dating of tree samples. These
00:17:13 --> 00:17:15 dramatic spikes, known as Miyaki events
00:17:15 --> 00:17:17 after the Japanese researcher first
00:17:17 --> 00:17:19 discovered them, offer invaluable data
00:17:19 --> 00:17:21 for scientists studying both solar
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 activity, ancient Earth systems, and
00:17:23 --> 00:17:25 space climate. Miyaki events allow
00:17:25 --> 00:17:27 scientists to pin out exact calendar
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 years in floating archaeological
00:17:29 --> 00:17:32 chronologies. Radiocarbon signals from
00:17:32 --> 00:17:34 such events have already enabled
00:17:34 --> 00:17:36 researchers to precisely date Viking
00:17:36 --> 00:17:37 settlements in New Foundland and
00:17:37 --> 00:17:40 Neolithic communities in Greece. The
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 findings are revising science's
00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 understanding of solar physics and space
00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 weather extremes. And this event
00:17:46 --> 00:17:49 establishes a new worst case scenario.
00:17:49 --> 00:17:51 Understanding its scale is critical for
00:17:51 --> 00:17:53 evaluating the risks posed by future
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 solar storms to modern infrastructure
00:17:55 --> 00:17:57 such as satellites, power grids, and
00:17:57 --> 00:18:00 communication and navigation systems.
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 This is space
00:18:01 --> 00:18:16 [Music]
00:18:16 --> 00:18:19 time. And time out of tech. Another
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 brief look at some of the other stories
00:18:20 --> 00:18:22 making news in science this week with a
00:18:22 --> 00:18:25 science report. A new study claims that
00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 people who work long hours could have
00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 altered brain structures. A report in
00:18:29 --> 00:18:31 the Journal of Occupational
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 Environmental Medicine looked at brain
00:18:32 --> 00:18:35 scans of 110 participants who worked
00:18:35 --> 00:18:37 either 52 or more hours a week or a
00:18:37 --> 00:18:40 standard 35 to 40hour week. They found
00:18:40 --> 00:18:42 that when compared with those who work
00:18:42 --> 00:18:44 standard hours, those who worked
00:18:44 --> 00:18:46 excessive hours had changes in brain
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 regions associated with working memory,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:50 problem solving, and emotional
00:18:50 --> 00:18:52 regulation. Now, while this study only
00:18:52 --> 00:18:54 provides a snapshot, can't be used to
00:18:54 --> 00:18:56 show cause and effect, authors say
00:18:56 --> 00:18:58 previous research had linked overwork
00:18:58 --> 00:19:00 with various health issues, and these
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 results can help provide more insights
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 into overwork and our
00:19:04 --> 00:19:07 bodies. Engineers have invented a smart
00:19:07 --> 00:19:09 sponge-like device that can capture
00:19:10 --> 00:19:12 water from thin air. A report in the
00:19:12 --> 00:19:14 journal of cleaner production claims the
00:19:14 --> 00:19:16 system uses the sun's energy and works
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 even in low humidity where other
00:19:18 --> 00:19:20 technologies such as fog harvesting and
00:19:20 --> 00:19:23 radiative cooling have struggled. They
00:19:23 --> 00:19:25 say the water from their device remained
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 effective across a broad range of
00:19:26 --> 00:19:29 humidity levels from 30 to 90% and
00:19:29 --> 00:19:34 temperature levels between 5 and 55° C.
00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 A new study claims that a ban on
00:19:36 --> 00:19:38 smartphones and social media access for
00:19:38 --> 00:19:40 kids doesn't promote a healthy use of
00:19:40 --> 00:19:43 technology by children. The findings
00:19:43 --> 00:19:45 reported in the British Medical Journal
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 claims the focus should move to a
00:19:46 --> 00:19:48 rightsbased approach with age
00:19:48 --> 00:19:50 appropriate design and education, one
00:19:50 --> 00:19:52 that protects kids from harm while
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 developing the right skills to help them
00:19:54 --> 00:19:56 participate in a digital society. The
00:19:56 --> 00:19:58 authors say that blanket restrictions on
00:19:58 --> 00:20:00 technology like smartphones are a stop
00:20:00 --> 00:20:02 gap solution that does little to support
00:20:02 --> 00:20:05 a child's longerterm healthy engagement
00:20:05 --> 00:20:08 with digital spaces across school, home,
00:20:08 --> 00:20:10 and other
00:20:10 --> 00:20:12 occasions. Australian telecommunications
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 giant Telstra has begun testing the
00:20:14 --> 00:20:16 Starlink broadband satellite network for
00:20:16 --> 00:20:18 remote customers beyond the conventional
00:20:18 --> 00:20:21 cell phone network. With the details,
00:20:21 --> 00:20:23 we're joined by technology editor Alex
00:20:23 --> 00:20:26 Sahara from techadvice.life. life. Yeah.
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 Well, they've been testing their
00:20:27 --> 00:20:29 Starlink capability to send text
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 messages to people and they're going to
00:20:31 --> 00:20:33 launch this in Australia later this
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 year. Now, this mirrors what Verizon did
00:20:35 --> 00:20:38 in the US with their ability to send
00:20:38 --> 00:20:40 messages via Star Link. This is
00:20:40 --> 00:20:42 augmented over what Apple launched a
00:20:42 --> 00:20:44 couple of years ago or the iPhone 14
00:20:44 --> 00:20:46 which has now been extended to the
00:20:46 --> 00:20:48 iPhone 13 to send emergency messages via
00:20:48 --> 00:20:50 SOS and now of course you can send other
00:20:50 --> 00:20:52 messages and use find my let your
00:20:52 --> 00:20:54 relatives see where you are. But in
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 other parts of the world like Australia
00:20:55 --> 00:20:57 and New Zealand and phone companies are
00:20:57 --> 00:20:59 like, "Wow, well, we can send messages
00:20:59 --> 00:21:01 and hopefully eventually soon also make
00:21:01 --> 00:21:03 phone calls via satellite networks from
00:21:03 --> 00:21:05 people are outside of the traditional
00:21:05 --> 00:21:07 cellular networks." And this is a very
00:21:07 --> 00:21:09 handy capability. So Telstra has sent
00:21:09 --> 00:21:12 55 text messages in its testing
00:21:12 --> 00:21:14 phase. And so this is basic testing. You
00:21:14 --> 00:21:16 don't have to be doing this for
00:21:16 --> 00:21:18 emergency purposes, but it is for hard
00:21:18 --> 00:21:20 to reach places where the network
00:21:20 --> 00:21:22 doesn't exist. You know, this is part of
00:21:22 --> 00:21:24 the ability for regional Australians
00:21:24 --> 00:21:26 primarily because they're the ones who
00:21:26 --> 00:21:28 live outside of the uh traditional 4G
00:21:28 --> 00:21:31 and 5G mobile network coverage. And they
00:21:31 --> 00:21:33 did also send 500 plus messages in the
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 live trial and they've been also sending
00:21:34 --> 00:21:37 GPS coordinates and emerges via text
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 message. So, this is an awesome update
00:21:39 --> 00:21:41 to the ability for the world to stay in
00:21:41 --> 00:21:44 contact wherever you are. and uh the new
00:21:44 --> 00:21:46 ubiquitous communications that we've
00:21:46 --> 00:21:48 sort of I guess dreamed of for for years
00:21:48 --> 00:21:50 ever since we've had satellite calls via
00:21:50 --> 00:21:52 Aridium and then uh the mobile networks
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 that have grown and grown and this is
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 the next logical step and given the fact
00:21:55 --> 00:21:58 that Elon Musk wants to get us all to
00:21:58 --> 00:22:00 Mars. No doubt at some point soon this
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 will be interplanetary as well but for
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 the time being we're still firmly
00:22:03 --> 00:22:05 anchored here on Earth. That's Alex
00:22:05 --> 00:22:09 Sahara from techadvice.live
00:22:09 --> 00:22:22 [Music]
00:22:22 --> 00:22:25 life. And that's the show for now.
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