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Solar Storms Are Down And So Are Earthquakes

September 30, 2013 by
A picture of a solar flare, or CME, exploding off the surface of the Sun.

Solar flares, or CMEs, exploding off the surface of the Sun are quiet right now.

There appears to be a connection between solar storms and earthquakes. It might be a coincidence, but then again, I don’t believe in coincidence.

When the Sun fires off huge coronal mass ejections (CMEs), earthquake records show that an increase in earthquakes occur at the same time all over the world.

The Sun is very calm right now, and is not throwing out as many massive CMEs; the “number” of earthquakes worldwide is also down.

Coincidence? Nah – not with Nature.

The Eye Of A Solar Storm

A picture of the Sun's coronal hole.

This coronal hole on the Sun is moving toward its North Pole. This shows movement toward an upcoming reversal of the Sun’s magnetic poles – NASA.

Right now, the solar CME cycle appears very calm. This does not mean that the current “solar cycle” is over, by any means. Actually, the present solar cycle peaks in 2013, so if anything, this means that the Sun is “sucking up” more energy from its surface as its magnetic poles prepare to flip.

Compare this to the eye of a hurricane; the eye is the center of the storm, and it is calm, quiet, sunny, and still. When you come out of the eye into the backside of the storm, you are back to hurricane winds.

No one really knows for sure, but monitoring the Sun’s polar magnetic flip should provide some hints when the CMEs will start flaring up again.

Maybe a decrease in the number of earthquakes mirrors a upcoming reversal of the Earth’s magnetic poles. No one knows because human technology was not on Earth when this happened last.

EQs

At this time, there has been a decrease in the number of earthquakes, worldwide, but an increase in magnitude – the quakes that have occurred have been doozies.

The following large earthquakes (5.0 and above) have occurred worldwide over the past 7 days:

  1. 5.6  Carlsberg Ridge (Indian Ocean near equator)
  2. 7.7  Pakistan
  3. 5.9  Pakistan
  4. 5.0  Pakistan
  5. 5.6  Pakistan
  6. 3 islands formed in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Pakistan after these quakes
  7. 5.0   Pakistan
  8. 5.5   Pakistan
  9. 5.0   Pakistan
  10. 5.5   Tonga
  11. 5.4   East Pacific Rise (South Polar region)
  12. 5.4   Alaska (North Polar region)
  13. 7.0   Peru (equator)
  14. 5.4   Reykjanes Ridge, Iceland (North Polar region)
  15. 5.7   Mexico (equator)
  16. 5.0   Tonga
  17. 5.0   Pakistan
  18. 5.2   Russia (North Polar region)
  19. 5.4   North Mid-Atlantic Ridge (North Polar region)
  20. 6.8   Pakistan
  21. 5.7   Tonga
  22. 5.0   South Mid-Atlantic Ridge (South Polar region)
  23. 5.7   Tonga
  24. 5.0   South Mid-Atlantic Ridge (South Polar region)
  25. 5.0   New Guinea
  26. 5.2   Russia (North Polar region)
  27. 5.1    SW Indian Ridge
  28. 5.2   Chile
  29. 5.0   Chile
  30. 6.5   New Zealand
  31. 5.4   Mid Atlantic Ridge
  32. 5.0   New Guinea
  33. 5.0   Japan

Believe it or not, 33 earthquakes 5.0 and above is a decrease in the number of recent earthquakes, but the strength of the quakes is the difference – their magnitudes are increasing. Merely a decade ago, the list above would have been for the entire year. Today, these large quakes are occurring within a week.

As the solar cycle recharges, we’ll have to wait and see if this list increases in both number and magnitude.

 

Filed Under: Space Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Electronics Interrupted By Solar Storm

August 22, 2013 by
Someone texting on their cell phone.

If your cell phone is acting up, hang in there – it’s just the recent solar CME.

If your cell phone, GPS, or Internet are acting wonky lately, don’t spend your time stuck on hold with your service providers – it’s probably the Sun messing things up.

On Tuesday, August 20, 2013, the Sun blasted billions of tons of solar particles toward the Earth at 3.3 million km/h (2 million mph).

That’s about 550 miles per second, and a fairly average speed for a CME. They happen all the time during an active solar cycle, but what’s unique about this CME is that it is headed toward the Earth.

CMEs

Radioactive particles ejected by Earth-directed CMEs typically take two or three days to reach our planet. CMEs that hit Earth produce beautiful auroras, known as the Northern and Southern Lights, and this was once the only effect from CMEs.

A picture of the aurora borealis.

The Northern Lights – aurora borealis.

Today, mankind has numerous satellites rotating around the Earth that supply the hubs for our dependency on a paperless society. Satellites power the Internet, wireless communications, and on-line banking, but CMEs can trigger geomagnetic storms that can disrupt radio communications, GPS signals, and power grids.

Head’s Up!

If your cell phone is dropping calls or your on-line banking is messing up, hang in there – not every CME smacks us head-on. 

Tomorrow is another day.

 

Filed Under: Climate, Space Tagged With: , , , , ,

Something Big Is Happening On The Sun

August 5, 2013 by
A picture of the sun's magnetic field.

Every 11 years, the Sun’s magnetic poles reverse, and this big event will take place within the next 2 to 3 months. Courtesy of NASA

Within the next two or three months, the Sun’s magnetic north and south poles will flip. Don’t worry – it won’t end time or destroy the Earth … the reversal of the Sun’s magnetic poles is a big event, but it happens every 11 years.

The coming reversal will mark the midpoint of the current Solar Cycle 24, and half of “Solar Max'”will be behind us, but half is yet to come.

Trickling Down To Earth

During polar field reversals, the Sun’s polar magnetic fields weaken, they then go to zero, and emerge again with the opposite polarity. This is a regular part of the solar cycle, and actually, this happens on all the planets. When the Earth’s magnetic poles reverse, the same thing happens to us (just not as hot). No human has ever been alive when the Earth’s poles have flipped, but we can learn about this process by studying the Sun.

A picture of the earth's magnetic field.

The Earth’s magnetic field reverses like the Sun’s, but we have much to learn about this phenomenon.

As the Earth orbits the Sun, we are exposed to its vacillating radiation and magnetism coming from its surface, and this stirs up “stormy space weather” around our planet that trickles down as climate change and the increase in natural disasters.

This is what we are witnessing today.

A Big Deal

A reversal of the Sun’s magnetic field is a very big deal. The Sun’s magnetic influence extends billions of kilometers beyond Pluto, and changes to the Sun’s polarity ripples all the way out into interstellar space. These ripples influence every planet in our solar system.

Get Ready For The Flip

A picture of the Sun's coronal hole.

Coronal hole on the sun moving toward the Sun’s North Pole showing the change in polarity. NASA, July 18, 2013.

The Sun’s north pole has already changed polarity, and the south pole will soon catch up. Soon, however, both poles will be reversed, and the second half of Solar Max will be underway.

The Sun’s two hemispheres are out of synch right now, but when they finally flip, the worst will be over. In time, the Sun’s magnetic field will reach a new equilibrium, but for us, here on Earth, we’ll have another 5 1/2 years of the Sun’s super warming … keep your sunglasses handy.

 

Filed Under: Pole Shift, Space Tagged With: , , , , ,
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