Climate Quote by Anonymous
““Reduced risk of solar flares: In 1859, a massive solar flare and geomagnetic storm hit the Earth. Magnetic storms induce electric currents in wires. Unfortunately for us, by 1859 we had wrapped the Earth in telegraph wires. The storm caused powerful currents in those wires, knocking out communications and in some cases causing telegraph equipment to catch fire. Since 1859, we’ve wrapped the Earth in a lot more wires. If the 1859 storm hit us today, the Department of Homeland Security estimates the economic damage to the US alone would be several trillion dollars—more than every hurricane that has ever hit the US combined.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Department of Homeland Security briefing, 2023
Historical solar storms show that modern wired infrastructure is vulnerable to massive geomagnetic events, risking trillions in damage.
In simple terms: Old solar storms could cause huge modern damage.
Key Takeaway
Prepare infrastructure for solar storms.
Themes
technology
risk
infrastructure
environment
policy
Mood
concerned
urgent
Type
policy
technical
When to use this quote
- energy grid planning
- telecommunications
- emergency management
- policy making
Key Concepts
geomagnetism
system resilience
economic impact
Questions to Reflect On
- What steps can reduce geomagnetic risk?
- Are we investing enough in resilient design?
A Different Perspective
Mitigation costs may be high and politically challenging.
![“I think what you're going to get from President-elect [ Donald] Trump is all of his folks together - Rex Tillerson, James Mattis, John Kelly, CIA, Homeland Security, everyone that you would want in the room, making decisions about that particular document and treaties like that document as to how…” quote by Reince Priebus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/03b/reince-priebus-3623_cia_i-think-what-you-re-going-to-get-from-pr_319832.jpg)
