Space storm alert: 90 seconds from catastrophe

IT IS midnight on 22 September 2012 and the skies above Manhattan are filled with a flickering curtain of colourful light. Few New Yorkers have seen the aurora this far south but their fascination is short-lived. Within a few seconds, electric bulbs dim and flicker, then become unusually bright for a fleeting moment. Then all the lights in the state go out. Within 90 seconds, the entire eastern half of the US is without power. Full Story »

Posted by Mike LaBonte

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Review

Walter Cox
4.2
by Walter Cox - Mar. 26, 2009

Yet another thing to worry about...oh, no! Yet this article rises above fear-mongering and informs the reader of real dangers. Since we know of at least one nineteenth-century solar storm that was of sufficient magnitude to devastate contemporary power grids, it would seem wise to harden our electrical infrastructure--especially if the stakes defined by Michael Brooks are accurate.

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