On This Day In History: Solar Storm Known As The Carrington Event Took Place – On August 28, 1859

MessageToEagle.com –  On August 28 to September 2, 1859, took place the Solar Storm known as the Carrington Event. During this period numerous sunspots were observed on the Sun.

1859 Aurora Storm - Frederic Edwin Church's 1865 painting "Aurora Borealis.
1859 Aurora Storm – Frederic Edwin Church’s 1865 painting “Aurora Borealis.

It was a powerful geomagnetic solar storm during solar cycle 10 (1855–1867). A solar coronal mass ejection hit Earth’s magnetosphere and induced one of the largest geomagnetic storms on record, September 1–2, 1859.

The event was observed and recorded by English astronomers Richard C. Carrington (1826–1875) and Richard Hodgson (1804–1872).

A solar storm of this magnitude occurring today would likely cause more widespread problems for a modern and technology-dependent society. The solar storm of 2012 was of similar magnitude, but it passed Earth’s orbit without striking the planet.

Solar Storm

The flare was associated with a major coronal mass ejection (CME) that traveled directly toward Earth, taking 17.6 hours to make the 150 million kilometer (93 million mile) journey.

On September 1–2, 1859, one of the largest recorded geomagnetic storms (as recorded by ground-based magnetometers) occurred.

See also:

How Solar Flares Affect Human Health – Our Mind And Body

How Dangerous Are The Biggest Solar Flares?

Earth Compared To A Giant Solar Flare Eruption

Aurorae were seen around the world, those in the northern hemisphere as far south as the Caribbean; those over the Rocky Mountains in the U.S. were so bright that their glow awoke gold miners, who began preparing breakfast because they thought it was morning. People in the northeastern United States could read a newspaper by the aurora’s light.

The aurora was visible as far from the poles as Sub-Saharan Africa (Senegal, Mauritania, perhaps Monrovia, Liberia), Monterrey and Tampico in Mexico, Queensland, Cuba, Hawaii, and even at lower latitudes very close to the equator, such as in Colombia.

Telegraph systems all over Europe and North America failed, in some cases giving telegraph operators electric shocks. Telegraph pylons threw sparks.  Some telegraph operators could continue to send and receive messages despite having disconnected their power supplies.

On Saturday, September 3, 1859, the Baltimore American and Commercial Advertiser reported,

“Those who happened to be out late on Thursday night had an opportunity of witnessing another magnificent display of the auroral lights…. The light appeared to cover the whole firmament, apparently like a luminous cloud, through which the stars of the larger magnitude indistinctly shone. The light was greater than that of the moon at its full, but had an indescribable softness and delicacy that seemed to envelop everything upon which it rested. Between 12 and 1 o’clock, when the display was at its full brilliancy, the quiet streets of the city resting under this strange light, presented a beautiful as well as singular appearance.”

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References:

Wikipedia