Environment

Electrojet Threatens Tropical Power Grids

Electricity grids in parts of the world once thought to be safe from power surges brought on by solar storms are actually at considerable risk, according to a new study.

Powerful geomagnetic storms triggered by solar flares have crashed grids across parts of North America and Europe, while those in the tropics have always been thought to be safe.

But, writing in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, Boston College space physicist Brett Carter says that a naturally occurring flow of current about 60 miles above Earth’s equatorial region can be amplified enough even during relatively quiet periods of space weather to damage power grids.

This primarily affects grids in low-latitude developing countries that have typically not been built to withstand such a geomagnetic shock.

The equatorial electrojet streaks across the daytime side of the planet above parts of Africa, South America, Southeast Asia and southern India.

Carter’s findings are likely to prompt other scientists to examine the potential weakness of power infrastructures in the developing countries that lie beneath the electrojet’s path.

“I think this is cause for a new way of looking at the impact of adverse space weather in a largely unstudied region, where health and economic well-being are increasingly reliant on dependable power infrastructure,” said Carter.