September 11 Space Weather Alert from NOAA Warns of Solar Flare

NOAA

NOAA has issued several Space Weather Alerts for those who might be flying on high-altitude flights or on spaceships today or tomorrow.

On Wednesday a high intensity solar flare erupted from the sun and shot towards Earth. It may affect high frequency (HF) radios and electronics for an hour or so -- but what NOAA is specifically warning about is the unusual amount of " Proton 100MeV Integral Flux," which presents "increased biological risk to astronauts or passengers and crew in high latitude, high altitude flights."

It also puts satellite systems at risk if they suffer a direct hit.

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For those who talk geek, here's the warning:

Space Weather Message Code: WARPC0
Serial Number: 78
Issue Time: 2014 Sep 10 2322 UTC

WARNING: Proton 100MeV Integral Flux above 1pfu expected
Valid From: 2014 Sep 10 2330 UTC
Valid To: 2014 Sep 11 2100 UTC
Warning Condition: Onset
Potential Impacts: An enhancement in the energetic portion of the solar radiation spectrum may indicate increased biological risk to astronauts or passengers and crew in high latitude, high altitude flights. Additionally, energetic particles may represent an increased risk to all satellite systems susceptible to single event effects. This information should be used in conjunction with the current Solar Radiation Storm conditions when assessing overall impact.

Space Weather Message Code: WARPX1
Serial Number: 433
Issue Time: 2014 Sep 10 2105 UTC

WARNING: Proton 10MeV Integral Flux above 10pfu expected
Valid From: 2014 Sep 10 2115 UTC
Valid To: 2014 Sep 11 2100 UTC
Warning Condition: Onset
Predicted NOAA Scale: S1 - Minor
Potential Impacts: Radio - Minor impacts on polar HF (high frequency) radio propagation resulting in fades at lower frequencies.


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NASA Tells the People of Earth: 'The World Will Not End Tomorrow'

Photo: Grapesofrad/Twitter

The people of Earth want answers -- and so they are flooding NASA with calls and emails about the end of the world — which, as everyone knows, is set to take place Friday, Dec. 21.

A NASA spokesperson told the LA Times that "200 to 300 people are contacting NASA per day to ask about the end of the world."

To be helpful, NASA has put together a web page entitled: "Beyond 2012: Why the World Won't End."

Amazingly, the scientists have concluded: "The world will not end in 2012."

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Caring for Imortal Jellyfish is a Full Time Job

Photo: Wild Guru Larry

There is a man in Japan that has spent the last 15 years caring for a brood of immortal jellyfish -- a form of life that, instead of dying when it gets old, ages backwards until it's a baby and then starts growing old again.

He's the only person who knows how to take care of them -- and it is a full-time job, caring for the immortal jellyfish. Full story at the New York Times.

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Hope for the Best, Plan for the Worst

Did you have trouble contacting your bank online over the past couple of days?

It turns out that "a shadowy but well organized hacker group in the Middle East has disrupted the electronic banking operations of America's largest financial institutions. . . underscoring U.S. vulnerability to online terrorism." (LA Times)

That's one more item to add to our sack of new and exciting things to worry about! Taking a random walk through Google News last night, we found even more:

* The energy firm whose systems are used to control more than half of all oil and gas pipelines in North America and Latin America confirmed yesterday it is under a serious cyber-security attack. (ComputerWorld)

* One of the worst droughts in a half century is raising prices for some of the world's most important foodstuffs. (CSMonitor)

* Catalonia may vote to secede from Spain, bringing down Spanish banks and cracking the Eurozone. Credit Writedowns

- Climate change could cause "killer hurricanes" in New York City. A simulation model by Princeton researchers warns of storms "the likes of which have not been seen." (US News)

* Earth has about a one-in-eight chance of being hit with an "extreme" solar flare in the next decade that could potentially cause billions of dollars in damage and cripple electronic communication systems. (US News)

* An asteroid big enough to vaporize New York City and most of New England strikes Earth roughly once every 300,000 years, and it's about due. See Sandia National Labs' model of the event here. 

* An electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack on the United States would change the “very fabric of U.S. society,” and millions could potentially lose their lives in the aftermath. A US commission suggests we get ready.

Now don't you feel better about those hackers draining your bank account? It could be so much worse!

Illustration by Don Davis, courtesy of NASA.

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Hang On To Your Tin Foil Hat: Strong Solar Storm Hitting Earth Today

A strong geomagnetic storm is racing at millions of miles per hour from the Sun toward Earth, scientists say. 

Its arrival today could affect power grids, airplane routes, communications and navigation systems like refined GPS used in industry.

Christian Science Monitor says this is just one of a group of solar storms, and another batch is in the cooker.

North American utilities are monitoring for abnormalities on their grids and have contingency plans, said Kimberly Mielcarek, spokeswoman for the North American Electric Reliability Corp.

According to a story in Reuters, today's event is a harbinger of things to come as the sun's activity hits its peak next year. 

On the other hand, today's high will be 67. Enjoy!

Photo courtesy of NOAA

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Brooklyn Rabbi Big Cigarette Crook; Brooklyn Heights Association Annual Meeting; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- This year's Brooklyn Heights Association annual meeting proves unusually entertaining. Brooklyn Eagle

- After 43 years on Court Street, Belanthi Gallery closes. PMFA

- Brooklyn sicko tells rape victim to 'let go' as he's sentenced to 47 years in prison. NY Post

- DUMBO Water Street rentals ready for occupancy. Rents from $2,700 to $5,775 per month. TRD

- 23 people connected to local bodegas were arrested for buying and distributing more than $4 million in bootleg smokes. Brooklyn Eagle . . .  One of the biggest crooks: a Williamsburg Orthodox rabbi. Failed Messiah

- The Irish are angry at Urban Outfitters for selling St. Patrick's Day merchandise that depicts them as drunks. Gothamist

- ‘Orwellian Nightmare’: Brooklyn attorney says new federal mail policy could destroy child-support debtors. Brooklyn Eagle

- The Earth has a roughly 12 percent chance of experiencing an enormous megaflare erupting from the sun in the next decade. This event could potentially fry the Earth's computers and cause trillions of dollars’ worth of damage. Wired via Gawker

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Columbia Waterfront Park Meeting; More On Brooklyn Heights Cinema; and More Brooklyn Briefs

- Join the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative and Regional Plan Association for a meeting on January 18th to plan for Columbia Waterfront Park -- a new public open space on Columbia Street between Kane and Degraw Streets. Cobble Hill Association

- Brooklyn Heights Cinema owner comments about what's going on at 70 Henry Street. BHB

- Brooklyn Councilman Lew Fidler has officially launched his campaign for a State Senate seat left open because of scandal. NY1

- The Brooklyn Historical Society has launched an exhibit about the Lefferts family that you can visit from the comfort of your own home. Brooklyn Before Now

- Perk of the job: Two TSA screeners who stole $40,000 from an air traveler's luggage at JFK were sentenced to just six months in prison. WSJ

- National housing analyst warns that the U.S. housing market may be in a “death spiral,” CNN reported. Via TRD

- The EPA worries about risks to our drinking water in New York fracking rules. Propublica

- Tickets to The Dark Knight Rises are already on sale. The movie opens July 19. NY Magazine

- Pets can eat real food. Fast Company

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Time-Lapse Video of Hurricane Irene Forming In Atlantic, from NOAA

Hurricane Irene's evolution from tropical wave to Category 3 storm is shown here in time-lapse imagery from the GOES-East satellite starting on August 19th and ending on August 24, 2011.

Visualization courtesy of  NOAAVisualizations.

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Have Fun Crashing Asteroids Into The Earth

We used Purdue University's "Impact: Earth!" program to run various asteroid crash scenarios, to see what would happen if an object crashed into the Earth near Brooklyn.

This fun simulation lets you vary your inputs: size of asteroid, density of asteroid, degree of impact, speed of flight, distance (you are) from impact and what the asteroid crashes into.

We soon learned that a small asteroid -- say, 2 feet across -- wouldn't be especially exciting unless it hit you on the head. As it gets bigger, denser and faster, the effects become correspondlingly more dramatic.

We wanted to produce a tsunami, so we did a bit of research and found that there are trench-like depressions about a hundred miles from Sandy Hook, N.J., south of Brooklyn, where the water obtains the depth of 2,700 feet. This is very roughly 115 miles from Downtown Brooklyn. (Area circled below shows the trench in the ocean floor, courtesy of Google Maps. You can click on it to see it better.)

What Would Happen
 We decided to simulate what would happen if the Earth were hit by the Apophis Asteroid, which is supposed to pass close to the Earth sometime this century.

When we plugged in a dense rock the size of Apophis -- 270 meters (885 feet) across -- hitting the water at the trench at a 45 degree angle, traveling 72 km/sec., the program computed the effects we would feel in Downtown Brooklyn:

First: We would see a fireball that would appear to be almost 7 times as big as the sun. The projectile would break up while in flight.and hit the surface with an impact energy of 1.62 x 10^4 MegaTons. A water crater would temporarily form of almost 7 miles in diameter. In the seafloor, a crater of roughly 2 miles in diameter would form.

Then: The major seismic shaking would arrive approximately 37 seconds after impact. Its magnitude on the Richter Scale: 6.3. Dishes, windows, doors would be disturbed; walls would make cracking sounds. Sensation: it would feel like a heavy truck striking the building. Standing cars would rock noticeably.

In 3 1/2 minutes, fine dust and a few bits would shower down in Brooklyn.

The air blast would arrive approximately 9.35 minutes after impact. Max wind velocity: 70.4 mph. Sound intensity: 83 dB (Loud as heavy traffic) Glass windows would shatter.

The impact-generated tsunami wave would arrive approximately 34.7 minutes after impact. Tsunami wave amplitude could be anywhere between 2 and 152 feet. This is a big difference -- but can't be predicted with accuracy because the program doesn't know the actual conditions (the slope of the shore line, the presence of sand bars, etc.).

If we make the asteroid denser (made out of iron) the effects are worse. The airblast will damage roofs, windows will shatter. The tsunami will be deeper.

Have Fun

Have fun playing Impact: Earth! yourself. You can make asteroids of all sizes and densities, traveling different speeds and hitting at different angles. (If we have the Apopsis Asteroid hit at 0 degrees, for example, there's no tsunami at all.)

Top illustration courtesy of Impact: Earth!

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