What Is Solar Maximum, and Why Should I Care?

Are you prepared for the solar maximum?

The solar maximum is a time during the solar cycle when we see a spike in solar flares. These flares can cause blackouts, communication disruptions, and other forms of chaos. It's essential to be prepared for this event so that you can stay safe and protect your family.

As our solar cycle heads into the solar maximum, it's critical to be prepared for what this could mean for you and your family. A solar flare could knock out power grids, disrupt communication systems, and cause other forms of chaos.

Here is what you need to know about solar maximum and how to prepare for it.

1. What Is Solar Maximum

Solar maximum is the point in the sun's 11-year solar cycle when it is most active.

This means there is an increased chance of solar flares – which are bursts of energy and radiation – as well as coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are vast clouds of plasma particles that can travel through space and disrupt communication systems and power grids.

Solar flares are flashes of energy from the sun that travel at the speed of light. With that, it only takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds for a solar flare to travel 93 million miles from the sun to the Earth.

On the other hand, Coronal Mass Ejections take one to three days to reach the Earth. That's because CMEs are clouds of slower-than-light speed plasma particles that erupt into space.

What is the Solar Minimum?

Solar minimum is the opposite of solar maximum. It's the period when the sun is least active at the start of a solar cycle. (Source)

What Are the Potential Effects of a Solar Flare or Coronal Mass Ejection?

Solar flares and CMEs can have many different effects, depending on their intensity. It can knock out power grids, disrupt communication systems, cause GPS errors, and even damage satellites.

A solar flare or CME that results in a power grid failure can have a number of different consequences, depending on the size and scope of the blackout. In a small blackout, people might only lose power for a few hours or a day. But in a large-scale blackout, people could be without power for days, weeks, or even months.

A power grid failure can also cause many problems, such as:

Disruption of transportation systems

Loss of communication

Disrupted water and sewage systems

Civil unrest

Health and safety risks

Classifications of Solar Flares

Solar scientists have three main classifications of solar flares: C, M, and X. Class C storms are the weakest and pose no threat to Earth. Class M storms are stronger and can cause aurorae, such as the southern lights near the poles. Lastly, Class X storms are the strongest and can disrupt power grids, communications systems, and GPS.

1859 Carrington Event - Historical Solar Flare

The most famous solar flare event is known as the Carrington Event. This occurred in 1859 and was so powerful that it caused telegraph lines to spark and catch fire. If a solar flare of this size occurred today, it could cause massive blackouts across the globe and billions of dollars in damages.

Northern Lights & the Sun's Magnetic Field

Proof of the sun's energy effects on the Earth is observable in the Northern Lights. The northern lights are created when the earth's magnetic field is impacted by the solar wind – a stream of charged particles from the sun. (Source)

2. When is the Next Solar Maximum

When it comes to the sun's 11-year solar cycles, we are currently in new solar cycle 25, which began in December 2019. The last solar cycle, solar cycle 24, began in 2008. (Source)

According to Forbes, "The latest forecast says that solar maximum—when the number of sunspots peaks and our star is at its most active—will o...