The solar storm of 1859, also known as the Carrington Event, was a large storm that occurred at the beginning of September 1859, just a few months before the solar maximum of 1860. A solar coronal mass ejection (CME) struck the Earth’s magnetosphere and induced one of the largest geomagnetic storms ever recorded. A beam of white light in the solar photosphere was observed and recorded by English astronomers Richard C. Carrington and Richard Hodgson. 

In August 1859, several sunspots were observed growing in size. One such observer, Richard Carrington, was the first to witness a sudden flash of light, an event that lasted about 5 minutes, with even damage in telegraph stations being reported. Telegraph systems throughout Europe and North America failed, and in some cases, there were also electric shocks affecting people. 

This “flash” was a massive CME, an explosion of magnetized plasma from the Sun’s upper atmosphere, the corona. In 17.6 hours, the CME crossed more than 150 million km between the Sun and the Earth. One can imagine the intensity of this storm, given that, according to NASA, CMEs usually take several days to reach the Earth! 

If a solar storm of this magnitude were to occur today, it would likely cause major disruptions to telecommunications, satellites, and other critical systems. It could cause an internet apocalypse, sending many people and businesses offline. For this reason, it is of major importance the monitoring of space weather and the creation of contingency plans in case an event of this magnitude occurs. 

And will we have a solar storm of this size shortly? 

These types of storms are difficult to predict, but we know that the sun is reaching another peak of activity, so the solar flares in 2024 and 2025 will be more intense. At this stage, the sun is reaching its peak activity, where many sunspots appear that will trigger solar flares. For this reason, satellites, telecommunication systems, power grids, and space operations must be prepared.