News erupts of disruption to planes, possibly trains, and automobiles
UK - Apr 15, 2010 (PRN):
News today that an active volcano in Iceland is causing major disruption among airlines and passengers is a reminder that international weather activity can have a massive impact on our lives. But what about the weather influences beyond planet Earth?
For some time now it has been recognised that “Space Weather” affects many aspects of what we do, including flying in aircraft. Excessive exposure to radiation from cosmic rays and solar flares – particularly among cabin crew, frequent flyers and pregnant women – is a recognised risk and a medical cause for concern and monitoring.
And yesterday (14th April 2010), it was reported on the BBC’s Top Gear News portal that cosmic rays were possibly to blame for Toyota’s recent automobile problems!
http://www.topgear.com/UK/car-news/toyota-cosmic-2010-04-14
According to the Top Gear Team, “Toyota has - and we're really, really not making this up - called in NASA's engineering team to investigate whether cosmic rays could have been responsible for the mysterious ‘stuck accelerator' scandal that has plagued the manufacturer in recent months.
Cosmic rays. Rays from space. It sounds, frankly, a bit mental... but it might not be.
Many suspect that Toyota's accelerator glitches have been caused by electronic problems, and one well-documented - albeit rare - cause of electronic problems is when cosmic radiation hits electronic chips. Remember the Qantas plane nearly-crash?
The risk of cosmic ray interference is expected to increase as chips and circuits get smaller.”
The BBC also reports today (15th April 2010) that “the UK and continental Europe could be gripped by more frequent cold winters in the future as a result of low solar activity, say researchers.”
Commenting, Space Weather expert, Bryn Jones of SolarMetrics, said: “There are known instances of cosmic rays affecting computer chips at ground level and avionics in flying aircraft. Some electronics are more susceptible to these radiation impacts, either by poor design or the materials used.
“It will be interesting to see what their investigation reveals. Space weather is of growing interest to airlines, governments, military forces and indeed the general public, as we learn more about how it affects our technology used in everyday lives. As well as the effect upon electronic chips and human exposure, there can be disruption to radio communications, mobile phone networks and GPS navigation accuracy.
“Providing useful and timely operational information for aircraft safety requires that space weather must also take account of events on Earth, such as the volcanic eruptions in Iceland and thunderstorms along airways. Understanding the space weather environment from Sun to mud is a complex picture, but as we increasingly rely upon technology it’s an area receiving increased attention.”
