Radiation from the Sun

     In the event of a coronal mass ejection (CME), the earth

coronal mass ejection

is hit by 'solar energetic particles' (protons, electrons, heavy ionized particles). The initial wave of the strike creates a 'geomagnetic storm' warping the planet's protective magnetosphere, essentially thinning it on the side receiving the brunt of the blast. Extreme auroral events are triggered and 'electrification' of the atmosphere occurs (see post: The Carrington Event).

     But this, alone, with exploding electrical transformers and disruption of navigation and communication systems may be a relatively minor problem for human-kind. This non-ionizing form of radiation (which includes visible light, thermal radiation, radio waves) is not powerful enough to 'knock out' electrons from atoms or molecules (thus, non-ionizing).

Electromagnetic Spectrum

     But the geomagnetic storm is not the entire punch of a CME. The more threatening tempest associated with a CME event occurs in areas where life forms are unprotected. Astronauts in orbit or populations on 'day-time' areas of the planet (the surface where the magnetic shield has been thinned or stripped) face the full force of the 'second' phase of the assault, the plasma eruption from the sun.
     Within the sun's ejectile are high-energy particles including protons, resulting in ionizing radiation (a 'solar proton event'), knocking out electrons from the atoms of their targets. This can destroy electronic circuits and, being an electrically-charged particle mass, will also cause extreme auroras. But it is the effect on living tissue by this ionizing radiation that is most dangerous - DNA changes, breakdown of cell-wall integrity, all leading to 'radiation poisoning' and rapid death or the triggering of cancerous transformation. This results in the destruction of ALL living things in its path - plants, animals, microbes. Nothing to eat. Only radio-active water to drink.
     X-rays, gamma-rays and neutrons (other forms of ionizing radiation, some more penetrating than others) all make up the plasma that our star can spew towards the earth during a coronal mass ejection.

     It would take a large coronal mass ejection and probably one that would have to be a direct hit on the planet for complete stripping of our magnetic shield and penetration of the ionizing particles down to the planet's surface.
     But what if this does occur? What do you do? Where do you hide? What do you eat? How do you survive?

   
     *Solar radiation: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

You Have Been Warned

     Our society today has grown dependent on its communication systems, its guidance/navigation systems, its electronically-monitored economic system...The list goes on and on.
   

Coronal Mass Ejection

     One effect of a direct hit by a CME (coronal mass ejection) would be similar to the blast of a nuclear bomb in the lower atmosphere, causing electro-magnetic disruption of power supplies that would pull down land-line as well as mobile phone systems, internet and cable communications. The complex electronics of orbiting communications satellites would be destroyed, resulting in malfunctioning or complete shut down of global positioning and aircraft navigation systems. The orbit of satellites would begin to degrade, eventually leading to their re-entry into and 'burning up' in the atmosphere.

   

     High altitude air travel (such as most long distance commercial flights) would result in significantly increased exposure of passengers and crew to ionizing radiation, especially if the flight were to cross over either of the earth's poles where the magnetosphere (part of earth's radiation shield) has been thinned, warped or even removed by the pulse of the CME.

     Any astronaut unfortunate enough to be in orbit (even within the spaceship or space station) would be exposed to even more radiation, likely a lethal dose.

     On the ground, the electrical grid would see transmission relays explode, spontaneous ignition of flammable material (ex telephone poles) and melting of metal wiring.

Disruption of the Magnetosphere by a CME

     Another perhaps more far-fetched result of a direct hit by a CME is the 'flipping' of earth's own magnetic poles and the triggering of wide-spread volcanic eruption throughout the world.
   

     The pulse of the coronal mass ejection would not be felt on the side of the earth facing away from the sun (that is, the night side of the planet). But the exposed side of the globe, if the blast is strong enough to (temporarily) sweep the magnetosphere aside, would receive extreme doses of ionizing radiation, destroying the membranes of cell bodies and disrupting DNA, killing any and all unprotected living thing that may be in its path.

     *Solar radiation: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

When the Sun Grows Angry

     The 'solar cycle' reflects magnetic changes in our star, seen in the change of position as well as magnetic polarity of sunspots. It was discovered and first described by German astronomer Samuel Heinrich Schwabe in 1843. This cycle waxes and wanes every 11 (earth) years. The last solar cycle (cycle 23, by human count) peaked in 2000-2002 then decayed to its low in 2008. A new cycle (solar cycle 24) began in that year. The 'solar maximum' is expected to occur sometime in 2012 (2013?).
   

Samuel Heinrich Schwabe

     A 'solar maximum' implies increased solar magnetic activity - more sunspot changes, more solar flares and possibly a 'solar storm'. To what degree a solar storm affects our planet depends on the severity of the storm itself as well as whether the storm on the sun takes place on an area that directly faces the earth or at an angle, either resulting in a 'direct hit' of our planet or simply a glancing blow.

   
     In early 2012, a mild solar storm hit our planet resulting in brilliant auroras at both poles - electromagnetic radiation of a benign nature that showed us once again the beauty of nature (see post: Fire in the Sky).

   
   

Solar  Flares ('Storms')

     Solar storms launch energy into space in three pulses: 1. electromagnetic radiation (much like an atmospheric nuclear blast) that results in effects on the earth's magnetosphere causing remarkable auroras and, in more extreme cases, warping or thinning of our protective shield. 2. proton (ionizing) radiation from deeper inside the sun. Space-bound astronauts, unprotected by our atmosphere may be at risk of exposure to these 'deadly rays'. 3. 'Coronal Mass Ejection' (CME) - expulsion of the sun's plasma that strikes our planet.

   

'Coronal Mass Ejection' (CME)

     These pulses can travel at speeds of up to 4 million miles per hour. With the earth only 93 million miles from its star, that gives us less than 25 minutes once a first pulse is launched!
     In the year 2012, our planet was hit by severe solar storms. During the week of March 5, 2012, the earth was witness to increased solar 'rage'. But a big one? Has our lonely blue planet ever been struck by a large CME? A direct hit? What happened?

       

     *Solar radiation: subject of research for the novel The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

The Winds of the Sun

     A Brief Summary of Sun Activity: Our sun is a star, a roiling mass of magnetism, chemistry and physics. It creates the 'solar wind', a normal flow of electrically-charged particles (electron, protons) that stream out from the corona (the sun's upper atmosphere) at over 1 million miles per hour.

 The 'Solar Wind'

     Our earth itself behaves much likes a large magnet as well, its own magnetic field (magnetosphere) extending from pole to pole, protecting the planet from the assault of the solar wind and the radiation pulsed out from the sun itself.

     'Sunspots' are points on the solar surface, darker than the surrounding regions, triggered by the sun's own intense magnetic activity. 'Solar flares' are bright spots on the sun's surface (usually located in the area of sunspots) which release huge masses of energy (electrically charged particles and radiation, from radio waves to gamma waves) through the corona and into space.

Sunspots

   
     The 'solar (magnetic) cycle' is a variation in solar sunspot activity, cycling through 11 years. The cycle results in a change in frequency and pattern of sunspots which relate to a change in the type and amount of irradiation launched from the sun towards the earth. It is the presence of the earth's magnetic 'shield' which protects us from most of the harmful effects of the sun's discharge.

     'Space weather' is the change in environment (charged particles, radiation) in the space between the atmospheres of the sun and the earth.
     In 364 BC, Chinese astronomers were the first to document sunspots. In ancient Greece of 300 BC, Theophrastis recorded the strange activity on the sun's surface. Throughout the Middle Ages, further observations were made but it wasn't until Galileo that it was understood that these 'spots' were signs of activity on the sun itself; an important point since, up until then, scientific and religious thought had held that all celestial bodies were 'perfect and unchanging spheres'.

Cosmic Rays Changing the Magnetosphere

     So then, what happens when 'space weather' changes? When 'solar flares' become more active? If the magnetospheric shield of the planet is altered?...What happens when the 'Winds of the Sun' turn fierce?

   
     *Solar radiation: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

The Mayan Calendar and the Long Count

   

     The Mayan civilization of Mesoamerica is known for many things including a hierarchal and structured society, warring ambitions, human sacrifice, abandoned cities overgrown by jungle, monumental pyramids and an astute knowledge of the heavens. Mayan astrologer-astronomers could predict solar eclipses and named the stars.

Mesoamerica

     The Mayans kept time with the use of three different dating systems that worked in parallel: the Haab or 'civil calendar' consisted of 18 months each of 20 days with 5 'extra' days added at the end of the year to make 365days in all (they were aware that the true length of the year required an additional 1/4 day each year but it is unclear how they compensated for this within their system); the Tzokin or 'divine calendar' with a combination of 2 'week lengths': a numbered week consisting of 13 days and a named week consisting of 20 days;and the Long Count (astronomical?) calendar.

Mayan Calendar

     The Long Count calendar was divided into 5 units: one 'kin'=1 day; one 'uinal'=20 'kin'; one 'tun'= 18 'uinal'; one 'katun'= 20 'tun'; and one 'baktun'=20 'katun'. Each unit also had divisions and was numbered so as there were: 19 'kin'; 19 'uinals'; 19 'tuns'; 17 'katuns'; and 13 'baktuns'.
     Notice that 1 'baktun' (equal to 20 'katuns') is the same as 144,000 days or 'kin'. There is that number again! (see blog: The Chosen Ones). The Mayans wrote down their Long Count dates from right to left, using their numbering system (fun with numbers?) making:

13.0.0.0.0

the beginning of the world (or era?) or the day of creation.

The Long Count calendar

     According to this Long Count system, creation took place in about the year 3114 BC (by our current system), and the end of the world will take place sometime between December 20 and 22, 2012. The Mayan calendar, however does 'renew' itself and continues with a new count beginning after our December date of 2012.

     Does the end of this Mayan Long Count really signify the end of the world or simply the beginning of a 'new age'?

     Archaeologists working at the Xultun ruins of the Mayan civilisation have recently (May 2012) reported striking finds, including the oldest-known Mayan astronomical tables.

     This site, in Guatemala, includes the first known instance of Mayan art painted on the walls of a dwelling. Researchers believe that the one of the rooms building was used as a writing room, and made up part of a complex associated with the work being done by Maya scribes.

Painted Wall at Xultun

   
     Several finds related to astronomical tables, including four long numbers on the east wall that represent a cycle lasting up to 2.5 million days. The east wall was covered by tabulations of black symbols or glyphs' (see post: Glyphs) which map out various astronomical cycles: that of Mars and Venus and the lunar eclipses.

     This Xultun find is the first place that all of the cycles have been found tied mathematically together in one place, representing a calendar that stretches more than 7,000 years into the future.

     Perhaps by coincidence, astronomical predictions show that, for the first time in 26,000 years, our sun will align with the center of our galaxy (the Milky Way) between December 20 and December 22, 2012.

Mayan Calendar at Xultun

     How did the Maya know this? Does this mean anything? Some predict that this alignment will cause catastrophic changes on our planet.

...'You have been warned.'...But that may be the subject for another post.

   
     *Mayan religion and the apocalypse: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

The Carrington Event

     Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are not uncommon events in our solar system. Nitrate layers in Greenland ice cores suggest that large CMEs hit our planet, on average, once every 500 years; smaller ones, several times each century. Relatively minor CMEs affected our world in 1921 and again in 1960.

Coronal Mass Ejections

     Even within the past thirty years, several severe solar storms and CMEs have taken place and affected our planet. In 1989, complete loss of the power grid was seen in the Canadian province of Quebec leaving nearly 7 million people without electricity,  the outage lasting 6 days. Between 1994 and 1997, severe solar geomagnetic storms were responsible for 600 million dollars worth of damage to orbiting communications satellites.
     In October 2003, a CME was detected and measures taken to prevent grid or communications damage but the blast was so strong that auroras were seen as far south as the Mediterranean. On July 14, 2003 (Bastille Day Event), a CME was launched, mostly missing the earth but reaching far enough out into space to be detected by the old Voyageur spacecraft.

Area Affected (Blue) by 1989 CME

     But the largest coronal mass ejection documented since 'modern' scientists were able to study the sun occurred in 1859. This CME is called 'The Carrington Event' (after the British astronomer, Richard Carrington).

     On September 1, 1859, only 17 hours after the massive solar flare was noted by Carrington, the CME slammed into our planet. Auroras were seen around the earth as far south as the Caribbean.
     Miners in the US Rocky Mountains awoke to a glow in the night sky that made them think that it was already morning.

Richard Carrington

     On the east coast of North America, people could read their newspapers as if it were daytime. Communication (telegraph) systems failed, giving electrical shocks to their operators and setting telegraph paper on fire. Some systems shut down completely but others continued to work despite being disconnected from their power source, power being fed to the machines through the static in the air!

     Today, we are much more reliant than in 1859 on electronic technology for our communications, travel even our weapon systems.
     So, what would happen in today's world if when our planet takes a direct hit by a coronal mass ejection?

   
     For an interesting video about The Carrington Event, click on the link below.

     The Attack of the Sun

   
     *Solar radiation: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.

The End of the World

     Eschatology: The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as theological 'science' concerned with the last 4 things: death, judgement, heaven and hell (The End of the World).

   

Angels and the Jewish Apocalypse

     But this is seen not just in the west, not just in Judeo-Christian culture (Books of Isaiah, Daniel, Matthew, Revelation); but also in Islam (the Hadith-sayings of Mohammed), Hinduism (Shiva will destroy the world), some forms of Buddhism, the Baha'i faith (more 'symbolic' eschatology some say, than in other religions), Zoroatrianism (molten metal will flow across the earth like a river).

     The earliest known example of a Jewish Apocalypse is the Book of Daniel (middle 200s B.C.). Some researchers state that at least a part of the Book of Enoch came before the Book of  Daniel). The 'end' in early Jewish tradition would be announced by great portents, and convulsions of nature, 'signs' on the earth and in the heavens. Generally, the idea was that the surrounding nations would be overcome, allowing the Hebrew people to rise to the occasion.

Manuscript of The Book of Enoch

     The idiom the '(hand) writing on the wall', is a portent of doom or misfortune, a saying which derives Book of Daniel (chapter 5) in which the fingers of a supernatural hand write a mysterious message in the presence of Belshazaar, king of Babylon. The writing foretells the demise of the Babylonian Empire. The phrase 'the writing is on the wall' is now a popular idiom for 'something bad is about to happen'. The 'end of the world', the apocalypse' have all been used in association with this phrase in Christian eschatology prophecy.

     The Muslim view of apocalypse is likely derived primarily from the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation (although Daniel is not mentioned in the Koran). In Jean-Pierre Filiu's 2011 book 'Apocalypse in Islam', he describes the fast-growing belief in Muslim countries that the end of the world is at hand--and with it the 'Great Battle' prophesied by both Sunni and Shi'ite tradition, which many believers expect will begin in the Afghan-Pakistani borderlands.

The Writing on the Wall

     According to the Hadith, a collection of the sayings of Muhammad, the end of the world will begin with the arrival of the Mahdi (see post: Invisible/Hidden Gods) who will become Caliph, destroy the Anti-Christ and bring in peace and justice.

     In Hinduism, time is cyclic, consisting of cycles ('Kalpas'), repeating infinitely. A true 'end time' as seen in other religious beliefs does not exists as such. However, Kalpa (and its sub cycles) has its own start and end. One Kalpa lasts 8.64 billion years. Traditional prophecies, as described in the Puranas and several other sacred Hindu texts, say that the world shall fall into chaos and degradation.

     Apocalypse for the Hindu is the natural ending of the world in the fourth age, the Kali Age. It is one of a series of apocalypses, each of which marks the end of one cycle and the beginning of another creation. It is said that Vishnu will appear again soon, as Kalki, a white horse, destined to destroy the present world and to take humanity to a different, higher plane.

     There are four yugs, or ages, in this process from complete purity to complete impurity. The final is Kali Yuga (the Dark Age), where civilization becomes spiritually degraded, human lives are shortened by violence and disease, and there is a general state of decay in nature. This is the worst period before complete destruction which is then followed by a golden age.

Hindu Apocalypse

 



     Besides 'molten metal that will flow across the earth like a river', Zoroastrian sacred texts tell the story of apocalypse, a tale of a terrible winter and a time when all wolves will meet together and will merge into one vast wolf (Frashegird). All snakes also will merge into one vast serpent (see post: The Serpent).

     In the New World, the Hopi believed that Sotuknang destroyed the 'first world' by 'opening up the volcanoes'. 

     

Zoroastrian Apocalypse - Frashegird

     The Maya of Mesoamerica (depending on what you read), predicted that The End of the World (or perhaps just a new beginning?) would occur in December 2012. It didn't happen.
   

      All of these teachings are perhaps more metaphorical than real. Whether you believe any one of them may not be important when you consider 'Scientific Eschatology' - comet impacts, extreme volcanic eruptions, coronal mass ejections (CMEs ie severe solar storms)...see post: The Carrington Event.

Sotuknang - Hopi Apocalypse

     *Apocalypse: subject of research for the novel  The Tao of the Thirteenth God - Amazon Kindle.