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Experts warn of massive solar storm in 2013

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    Sun reaching peak of 11-year activity cycle

  • Duration 3:31
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This transcript is automatically generated

When the looks like that.

-- called the perfect solar storm this is -- -- here.

Experts warn that a massive solar storm is set to erupt right here.

And the devastation could total as much as two trillion dollars.

-- calendar large Discover Magazine hello my friend hello -- let's skip the first image up if we could the one that shows planet earth relative to.

The surface of the sun.

Because planet earth is way down here in the bottom left hand corner right the sun is massive how do we know here is right here right right -- -- scale there's little -- tonight.

How come folks like you -- so worried about solar flight hours in 2013.

Well so we know from watching the sun for hundreds of years the sun goes through an eleven year cycle being relatively quiet.

Very active and violent.

2013 as the peak of that eleven year cycle so we know what almost like clockwork every eleven years you go through a bad period.

And -- eleven years as -- more technology -- -- more satellites wouldn't it depend more on our electrical infrastructure we're more borrow before we get hit with the solar flare what does that do to.

Unless what does it do to our technology what does it do to our civilization right so you're looking at here that this Sutton.

This is this is million degree plasma coming out of the sun million million degree.

At coming out at 300 to 500 miles per second.

It travels through space it hits the earth and actually the biggest thing that does is.

This is on its it's all magnetized.

The earth -- kind of -- it wiggles everything and that makes electrical currents to go crazy everywhere -- can lead -- blackouts it can overload your satellites.

-- can -- radio transmissions and GPS transmissions.

That's happened myself.

-- -- about the trillion dollars in damage.

1859.

Apparently earth was hit by a doozy.

But that was long before we have -- technology that we do today exactly is that is that even a possibility if you go back a 150 years ago and think that we could be -- again like that.

With no warning we actually -- know that that happens he can go back and look through.

Actually -- -- glaciers glaciers record different times in the past when when these things happened actually -- the evidence of it gets buried in the ice so we know this happens every.

30500 years so at last was a 150 years ago it could happen.

Hundred years from now it also happen tomorrow.

And the one yet but the these -- believe it or not.

That was actually not so bad that that's that's not an okay that's that's an okay one that's that's one that actually didn't cause a lot of trouble the what happened 1859.

Was maybe a hundred times that this is the -- comes up with some right here -- adverse toward rights in this this lingering right this is -- this is thirty times the size the earth.

This is a small one.

The one from 1859.

This is you think the thing about you there's very little technology back then it was so intense that telegraphed around the world were sparking and setting off fires -- now imagine.

You do that with your GPS satellites in your cellphones and then all the things that we have today become a global blackout so we go about the look forward to.

Does this keep you up at night yes -- -- You know what it you know.

This does this cut this I -- I was kind of flared as you know it gives me up at night.

Look at the other night is that.

That it is that I know that sometime in the next it in my lifetime and probably within you have made in -- in the next 120 years there is going to be.

A country wide blackout and I don't you know.

We're gonna survive it but imagine hospitals blacked out.

Transportation shut down all your computers all your Smartphone sit down together and actually that that does really wearing -- a lead story thank you Corey.

Martha now.

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