Space weather "storms" can cause electricity to flow in Earth's atmosphere. That can cause unusual electrical currents in the wires that carry electricity to homes. Sometimes space weather storms mess up the flow of electricity in our power system so much that they cause blackouts.
Click on image for full size
Image courtesy John G. Kappenman, Minnesota Power, Duluth, Minnesota.
Space Weather Effects on Electrical Power Systems
Space weather "storms" can cause problems on Earth. They can even mess up our systems that make electricity. They can also damage the wires and other equipment used to deliver electricity to peoples' houses. Sometimes really big space weather storms can cause blackouts over large areas. In March of 1989 a big space weather storm hit eastern Canada. Six million people lost their electrical power for nine hours or longer!
Our electrical systems use a special type of electricity. It is called alternating current (AC) electricity. There is another type of electricity called direct current (DC) electricity. Space weather storms can make DC electricity flow in wires. Transformers are devices that are connected to the wires. Transformers work fine when AC electricity is flowing through them. However, DC electricity is bad for transformers. When space weather storms make DC electricity in the wires it can damage the transformers. Sometimes it can even make the transformers explode!
Big space weather storms can damage a lot of transformers. If that happens, electricity stops flowing to homes and stores. That can cause a blackout.
Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!
Learn about Earth and space science, and have fun while doing it! The
games section of our
online store includes a
climate change card game and the
Traveling Nitrogen game!
You might also be interested in:
There are two types of electrical currents that can flow through wires: direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC). Direct current (DC) electricity flows in the same direction all the time through
...more
Space weather causes electricity to flow in our atmosphere. Sometimes that electricity lights up the sky! It causes the aurora (the Southern and Northern Lights). The electric currents in the atmosphere
...more
We get electricity in our homes and schools from our electrical power system. Did you know that space weather storms can mess up the power system? When that happens, people are left without electricity.
...more
Sometimes a whole electric power system shuts down. This can happen after a strong space weather storm. It is hard to get the whole system running again after it has been shut down all the way. The main
...more
Did you know that a storm in space could cause the lights to go out in your house? That's what happened to people in Canada in 1989. In March 1989 a space weather storm hit Earth. It caused an electrical
...more
Did you know that the Earth has a magnetic field? It's almost as if a giant bar magnet ran through our planet. The magnetic field of the Earth is like a huge bubble around our planet. This bubble keeps
...more
The Sun is huge. It has an effect on things even if they are far from the Sun. The "bubble" where the Sun has an effect on things is called the heliosphere. It goes even past Pluto! The place
...more
