HT TECH wants to start sending you push notifications. Click allow to subscribe

Solar storm 2021: Indian researcher says Internet can stop working due to this ‘super' event

Solar storm 2021: A solar storm that is big enough can destroy infrastructure and cause an internet blackout. Solar storm impact can be extremely severe. It can knock out the internet and that will affect the digital world immensely. Here is what an Indian researcher has said about the backbone of the Internet and how a solar superstorm event can impact it.

By: HT TECH
Updated on: Aug 21 2022, 20:02 IST
Solar storm 2021: From satellites to sea cables, Internet infrastructure is under threat from a solar storm, reveals researcher. Solar storm impact research was carried out and published by Sangeetha Abdu Jyothi. (Pixabay)
Solar storm 2021: From satellites to sea cables, Internet infrastructure is under threat from a solar storm, reveals researcher. Solar storm impact research was carried out and published by Sangeetha Abdu Jyothi. (Pixabay)

Solar storm 2021: There is another solar storm coming, and the Internet, which is the backbone of almost every activity that happens in the world today, be it governance, medicine, manufacturing, banking or even education, is under threat again. A new report on solar storm impact suggests that a massive upcoming solar storm is likely to damage the infrastructure and in the process cause a massive internet apocalypse.

According to a research paper published by Sangeetha Abdu Jyothi of the University of California, Irvine and VMware Research, a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), popularly known as a solar storm, is a directional ejection of a large mass of highly magnetized particles from the sun. When the earth is in the direct path of a solar storm, these magnetized and charged solar particles will interact with the earth’s magnetic field and produce several effects, which includes damaging long-distance cables that constitute the backbone of the Internet.

You may be interested in

Mobiles Tablets Laptops
7% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
  • Black Titanium
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage
₹148,900₹159,900
Buy now
23% OFF
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G
  • Green
  • 12 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage
₹115,999₹149,999
Buy now
Google Pixel 8 Pro
  • Obsidian
  • 12 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹106,998
Check details
Apple iPhone 15 Plus
  • Black
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹87,900
Check details
21% OFF
Acer Swift Go SFG14 41 NX KG3SI 002 Laptop
  • Pure Silver
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 512 GB SSD
₹58,990₹74,999
Buy now
39% OFF
Acer Aspire 5 A515 57G Laptop
  • Gray
  • 16 GB RAM
  • 512 GB SSD
₹54,949₹89,999
Buy now
22% OFF
Acer Aspire 3 A315 24 NX KDESI 004 Laptop
  • Silver
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 512 GB SSD
₹33,499₹42,999
Buy now
39% OFF
Asus VivoBook 15 X515JA BQ322WS Laptop
  • Transparent Silver
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 512 GB SSD
₹31,490₹51,990
Buy now
34% OFF
Xiaomi Pad 6
  • Mist Blue
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹26,299₹39,999
Buy now
55% OFF
Lenovo Tab M10 5G
  • Abyss Blue
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹20,999₹47,000
Buy now
32% OFF
Realme Pad 2
  • Imagination Grey
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹19,790₹28,999
Buy now
Honor Pad X9
  • Gray
  • 4 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹14,999
Check details

Also read: Looking for a smartphone? Check Mobile Finder here.

Now, the present day internet primarily uses fiber optic cables, which are immune to a solar storm unlike the previous generation of coaxial cables, since it carries light and not electric current. However, longhaul cables that stretch hundreds or thousands of kilometers also have an accompanying conductor that connects repeaters in series along the length of cables called the power feeding line. Solar storm impact will affect this conductor, as per the researcher.

Solar storm 2021 infra threat: Furthermore, the researcher says that the submarine cables are more vulnerable to a solar storm than land cables, primarily due to their larger lengths. The researcher also says the impact of a solar storm on the internet infrastructure is also based on topology. For instance, the US is highly susceptible to disconnection from Europe. Europe is in a vulnerable location but is more resilient due to the presence of a larger number of shorter cables. Asia has relatively high resilience with Singapore acting as a hub with connections to several countries. “Google data centers have better resilience than Facebook’s,” the researcher wrote.

While under-the-sea cables are more impacted by solar storms, the researcher says that communication satellites are among the most severely systems that can be affected by a solar storm. “The damages are not caused by GIC but due to direct exposure to highly charged particles in CMEs...Threats to communication satellites include damage to electronic components and extra drag on the satellite, particularly in low earth orbit systems such as Starlink that can cause orbital decay and uncontrolled reentry to earth,” the researcher wrote.

Solar storm 2021 impact: If you are wondering what sort of an effect this solar storm will have on the Internet then researcher Jyothi has some clues for you. The researcher says that most of the repeaters are highly susceptible to failure. And if most of the repeaters on a network go offline, it could create an internet blackout in a nation that only relies on undersea cables. The Internet today has been designed in a way that even if one pathway fails, it could be rerouted through another pathway. But this would come at an immense cost to both connectivity and speed. That said, it is difficult to predict exactly what will happen when the solar storm hits. In any case, it is safe to say that it won’t be good. Having said that, it will all depend on how massive the solar storm is - size actually matters. And that is something that has been referred to as a solar superstorm.

Catch all the Latest Tech News, Mobile News, Laptop News, Gaming news, Wearables News , How To News, also keep up with us on ,Twitter, Facebook, , and Instagram. For our latest videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel.

First Published Date: 01 Sep, 05:30 IST
Tags:

Sale

Mobiles Tablets Laptops
4% OFF
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
  • Titanium Black
  • 12 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage
₹129,999₹134,999
Buy now
7% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
  • Black Titanium
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage
₹148,900₹159,900
Buy now
13% OFF
Xiaomi 14
  • Matte Black
  • 12 GB RAM
  • 512 GB Storage
₹69,999₹79,999
Buy now
10% OFF
Apple iPhone 15 Plus
  • Black
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹80,990₹89,900
Buy now
33% OFF
Xiaomi Pad 6
  • Mist Blue
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹26,999₹39,999
Buy now
28% OFF
Realme Pad 2
  • Imagination Grey
  • 6 GB RAM
  • 128 GB Storage
₹17,999₹24,999
Buy now
24% OFF
Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite
  • Silver
  • 3 GB RAM
  • 32 GB Storage
₹9,710₹12,700
Buy now
18% OFF
Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 5G 256GB
  • Graphite
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 256 GB Storage
₹93,648₹113,798
Buy now
23% OFF
Infinix INBook X1 Neo XL22 Laptop Intel Celeron Quad Core 8 GB 256 GB SSD Windows 11
  • Blue
  • 4 GB RAM
  • 128 GB SSD
₹22,990₹29,990
Buy now
29% OFF
Asus TUF Gaming F15 FX506HF HN024W Laptop
  • Black
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 512 GB SSD
₹58,590₹82,990
Buy now
19% OFF
Asus ROG Strix G17 G713PI LL057WS Laptop
  • Eclipse Gray
  • 32 GB RAM
  • 1 TB SSD
₹207,990₹257,990
Buy now
28% OFF
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 GA402NU N2023WS Laptop
  • Eclipse Gray
  • 16 GB RAM
  • 1 TB SSD
₹144,990₹201,990
Buy now
NEXT ARTICLE BEGINS