We are beginning to enter the peaking phase of Solar Cycle #25. In the next couple years, we might see some exciting activity from the Sun. While not expected to be as active as previous cycles – and certainly not as turbulent as the cometary storm which accompanied Comet Hale-Bopp during the 1990s and early 2000s – nevertheless, the odds for a civilization kill shot from a solar storm has increased (Survival Praxis #2).
The reason is because Earth’s geomagnetic fields are weakening and becoming more disorganized as protective shields. More radiation in general is being let in, and we are more vulnerable to a sustained EMP storm which would destroy our electronic technology.
Douglas Vogt in recent lectures has argued that a Carrington level event could cause a conflagration throughout the world, as the copper wiring in our homes melts and causes house fires. This was an effect that I had not sufficiently considered.
I have seen faulty wiring spark and cause fires. It is a very powerful and frightening force which must be respected. It will not matter if electrical current is flowing through the wires of your house or not. Induction will occur from the atmosphere, the wires will overcharge, and the heat will melt or ignite any combustibles nearby. (Keep in mind that these sparks are not always visible. Electrical current can jump without visible observation.)
No Faraday Cage can protect you from this. No grounding rods. Unplugging your electric appliances will not help, either. Any stand alone device with copper (or aluminum) wiring could burst into flames on its own. The only sure way to protect yourself is to not have anything with wiring in your house.
Who wants to live like that?
In future installments of our Survival Praxis series, ways of protecting yourself from these effects will be discussed. But even if you have protected your property, does that mean your neighbor has or society in general? The conflagration would be worldwide and the results could be as devastating as the solar nova predicted on this website.
There will likely be little to no warning. We think that our satellites will see the solar storms before they reach Earth, giving us enough time to prepare: but that only works if the satellites themselves have been adequately protected from the almost instantaneous pulse and if the government is willing and able to warn us.
I have been monitoring my field compasses during these storms (see SP31, 32, 33) So far, they only flutter; sometimes the needles will move 1 or 2 degrees. My theory is that a solar storm large enough to create a Carrington-level disaster would cause them to gyrate or move the needle much more significantly. I don’t have answers yet. But if I come up with anything, I will post the findings to this website.
— JWS, February 26, 2023
