Space Weather Essay Example for Free

Space Weather Essay Space weather is what happens in space and how it affects the Earths weather. Even though in space it may not look like a big thing but when those effects reach Earth it can make a huge impact on the Earths weather. It can cause natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, etc. Space weather doesnt just affect the Earths weather but it can also affect new technology. Its been causing problems with new technology as early as when the telegraph was invented in the 19th century. Solar flares can disrupt power grids, get in the way of high-frequency airline and military communications, disrupt GPS signals, interupt civilian communications, etc. Space weather can cover the Earths atmosphere with a hazardous and dangerous radiation. Even the technology we use like traffic lights, cell phones, street lights, etc could be affected by a solar flare. Furthermore stuff like solar flares have been occuring more often since global warming started to become more gruesome. This is because of the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere along with other gases and these gases are trapped in the Earths atmosphere and the more gases are trapped in the atmosphere the less gases are let out into space. This can create problems like species extinction, flooding around coastal areas, make seasons longer then they should be, more frequent and severe storms, and alter temperature patterns. Along with solar flares, solar winds can also affect the Earhs weather. This is because the intense clouds of high energy particles which are often made by solar storms and make their way to Earth in about 3 to 4 days it collides with the Earths magnetic field. The particles enters Earths magnetic field near both north and south poles. When that happens it causes many problems with technology. Like solar flares and solar winds magnetic storms can also cause damage to our way of life on Earth espically now since we rely on technology so much. Magnetic storms can pump extra electricty into our power lines and pipelines causing blackouts and gas leaks. For example, in March 1989 a magnetic storm caused a thirty-six million transformer in New Jersey collapsed the entire power grid in Quebec, Canada. When that happened it left six million people without electricity. Space weather can also be very hazardous for astronauts. For example, in between the flights for both Apollo 16 and Apollo 17 an intense solar flare occurred. This would have killed the astronauts on board Apollo 16 and Apollo 17 if they had been on their way to go to the moon during that time. These are just some of the many things on how space weather can affect the Earth and the Earths weather. Just to remind you space weather is what happens in space and how it affects the Earth and its weather. It can make a huge impact on Earths weather and Earth even though in space it may not look like a big deal. These are some ways space weather affects the Earth and its weather.