The 20 June 2015 a gigantic plasma cloud emerged from the solar corona in the direction of Earth. Fifty-two hours later, the 22 of June, the swarm of particles, traveling at two and a half million kilometers per hour, crashed into our shield, the earth’s magnetosphere. The compressed so much and so violently that he did “break it” for a time, creating a geomagnetic storm, whose consequences were lived out in the latitudes further north. Today, after many data analyzed, the telescope, muons, GRAPES-3, tells us what happened.
Break the shield ground
this is Not the first time that this has happened, of course. The Earth, luckily for us, it is protected from the lethal action of cosmic rays thanks to a shield known as the magnetosphere. the All the planets of our system with magnetic field possess a magnetosphere. Some, such as Mars, are too weak to protect from the solar wind. What happens is that the particles of solar wind, are captured and diverted by the action of the field. In geomagnetic storms, the pressure generated by these particles, which push against the shield, is such that they end up by destabilizing temporarily. Literally “break”. But only for a time, of course.
As we said, this happens from time to time, causing the so-called “solar storms”, which refers to the event occurring on the surface of our parent star. is The consequences of such storms are very varied and, at times, little understood. One of the main manifestations are the auroras, which occur as a result of the solar wind into our atmosphere. These occur with greater intensity during a geomagnetic storm because our shield is there to repelerlas so easily.
There is the possibility that the particles from the Sun are capable of damaging satellites or electronic instruments
Other consequences are the loss of radio signals (with the catastrophe in communications that this involves) that may occur. Though it is less studied, there is also the possibility that the particles from the Sun are capable of damaging satellites, electronic instruments or, even, to the living beings. By the time the damage has been minimal. Although it is not the first time that we hear of a “solar storm perfect” and epithets like that indicate the alleged violence of the phenomenon.
GRAPES-3 and the cloud of muons
In a wooded hillside of Ooty, India, more than a hundred structures of only half a meter, as if of enormous mushrooms made of metal they were, dotting the green grass. But no one would say that under the earth that hides it is one of the detectors most powerful in the world at the time of the “hunt” for cosmic rays. The GRAPES-3, with the detector of ionized particles in the cascade, as well as its complex of antennas specially prepared to capture the attention of the muon, is able to analyze what others can’t.
Its purpose is to discover more about the nuclear nature of the cosmic rays, the high-energy rays and the modulation of the solar activity. Among its objectives of the study are to understand the solar effects on the Earth. In a recent study, the GRAPES-3 analyzed the data of June 2015, when a solar storm replaced the protective shield of the Earth.
The huge cloud of plasma coming from the Sun reach the earth at a speed of vertigo. Its size and its intensity led to the compression of the magnetosphere, which is not able to bear it, and “broke,” in part, temporarily. This allowed the entry of solar particles in our atmosphere, leading, as we mentioned, auroras more numerous and intense, as well as total losses of a radio signal in many parts of the north of our little planet. In that time was when GRAPES-3 detected the signal storm and was able to collect the data. The physical charge of the project have spent a whole year analyzing and simulating to infer the implications that this can have.
The storm lasted approximately two hours and in a range of 20 Gigaelectronvoltios
The storm lasted approximately two hours and in a range of 20 Gigaelectronvoltios. Luckily, in addition to the inconvenience caused in the communications, it is not detected any kind of more serious problem. And is that the experts, as we said, do not know what they can expect from a solar storm strong enough. In fact, the expectations are quite ominous. the From the malfunction of all types of electronic systems and the loss of satellites up to a total blockade of all the electrical appliances. For now this looks more like an argument of science fiction than a reality. But, if anything, the scientists of the GRAPES-3 continue to investigate to better understand the nature of cosmic rays. And put a solution before the problem.
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