Thanks for posting, good information in that article. I have researched the Carrington Event of course, and the 1989 storm that affected Quebec. But had not previously come across the May 1921 event mentioned in the article.
Sounds like this was one of the REAL events. Oh flatulent Sun, what hath thou wrought! Imagine one of the Good ones happening today! What with the hundreds of millions of iPhone addicts, this EMP could generate a Zombie Apocalypse.
Good morning Sourdough, Thank you for introducing this. Had not heard of this 1921 disturbance and admit to not knowing about the 1859 one either. The question posed in article "... ... if today?" is easy for Preppers to reply to. A guaranteed mess, at best. Appreciated reading term "civil contingency experts". That article mentioning New York Central RR ... merged into Penn Central RR, a powerhouse of the industrial world. Later, the wealth was drained out of Penn Central and thrown to the public as "Amtrak". I'm wondering why this 1921 emergency event is not well know but the 1906 San Francisco earthquake is famous. Much to think about.
Doing the math - 1859 the Carrington Event - 1921 Coronal Mass Ejection - Both powerful enough to destroy electrical grids and communication networks , setting structures on fire , frying computer chips thus making fuel pumps and most automobiles un- functionable . Taking into account this limited knowledge on this , that history has provided the next electrical , computer chip frying is due in the year 2003 . The Coronal Virus havoc would likely pale in comparison to a massive Coronal Mass Ejection . Big rig trucks , airplanes and trains would be brought to a stand still in any effected area , thus disrupting the food supply chain .
A few things to note. The CME of 1921 lasted for (3) Three days, generally current time most people think it is a single relatively short blast. Also the CME should not be a very big widespread problem for earth bound power grids, because of long notice before event impacted earth systems. The impact on all of the satellites could, and most likely would be devastating. Especially the International Space Station. A massive CME would be "Selectively" destructive, but would not push us into the 1800's.
"Would Your Car Survive an EMP Attack" https://www.lifewire.com/would-your-car-survive-an-emp-attack-3903248 "There are a few possible reasons why the electronics in our cars may be a little bit more robust than we give them credit for. The first is that the electronics in cars and trucks are already somewhat shielded, and they also tend to be a little more robust than most consumer electronics due to the harsh conditions they are subjected to while on the road. "Another factor that may help protect the electronics in a car is that the metal body of the vehicle can act as a partial Faraday cage. This is why you can survive your vehicle being struck by lightning, and it’s also why car radio antennas are located outside, rather than inside, the vehicle. Of course, your car isn’t a perfect Faraday cage, or you wouldn’t be able to make and receive cell phone calls. "While real-world testing seems to indicate that most modern cars and trucks will start back up and drive just fine following an EMP attack, there are a few other factors that warrant consideration. "For instance, older cars and trucks are simpler, easier to work on, and often easier to find parts for. And in a worst-case scenario, following an EMP attack, there is a definite argument to be made for an older, reliable vehicle that you can work on yourself. "The other main issue to consider is that if the entire power grid is taken down, fuel production and supply will also be dead in the water until it comes back up. That means you'll be stuck with whatever fuel you have on hand, which is where the knowledge of how to make ethanol or biodiesel at home could come in very handy." The electric pumps at gas stations and larger fuel stations would likely survive, however the digital electronics switching the pumps on and off could get toasted. This would mean manually switching the pumps on and off with a stand-alone generator. Older vehicles still using distributor caps would see arcing during an EMP hit, but then would likely go back into operation. Inverters, 12V DC to 120V AC, could use old "beater" trucks to provide energy to needed devices. This would buy time to go get functioning generators. If you need to keep electronics going, build yourself a Faraday Cage for their protection. In industry, there is a lot of EMP protection about. This is to protect control electronics from getting fried by electric welding modalities that spray all manner of frequencies and their harmonics throughout the factory via radiation and conduction. Watch for ground loops; gotta have TRUE grounding. There's all manner of equipment that can throw nasty noise. Thirty-five years ago, we did EXTENSIVE testing on our industrial control equipment to make sure it was protected from radiated and conducted noise. We'd through man-made lightning bolts straight into control housings. Been there, done that.
an EMP would probably fry most electrics and electronics in the modern world, some would be shielded most would not. dosent bother me, I don't much care for the modern world anyway, I will just adapt and revert to an earlier way of living like I did before.
