Are the Northern Lights dangerous? - Fabio Pacucci

Prevodilac: Una Kavazović Lektor: Milenka Okuka

On September 1st, 1859, miners following the Colorado gold rush woke up

Prvog septembra 1859. godine, rudarima zlatne groznice u Koloradu je osvanuo

to another sunny day.

još jedan sunčan dan.

Or so they thought.

Ili su bar tako mislili.

To their surprise, they soon discovered it was actually 1 am;

Na njihovo iznenađenje, ubrzo su uvideli da je ipak jedan ujutru;

and the sky wasn’t lit by the Sun, but rather by brilliant drapes of light.

i da nebo nije obasjano suncem, već neverovatnim svetlosnim zastorom.

The blazing glow could be seen as far as the Caribbean,

Ovaj blešteći sjaj mogao se videti čak i sa Kariba,

leading people in many regions to believe that nearby cities had caught fire.

što je navelo ljude u mnogim regijama da pomisle kako obližnji gradovi gore.

But the true cause of what would come to be known as the Carrington Event

Međutim, pravi uzrok onoga što će postati poznato pod imenom Karingtonov događaj

was a solar storm— the largest in recorded history.

je bila solarna oluja— najveća zabeležena u istoriji.

Solar storms are one of many astrophysical phenomena caused by magnetic fields.

Solarne oluje su jedan od astrofizičkih fenomena uzrokovanih magentnim poljima.

These fields are generated by movements of electrically charged particles

Ova polja nastaju kretanjem naelektrisanih čestica

like protons and electrons.

kao što su protoni i elektroni.

For example, Earth’s magnetic field is generated by charged molten metals

Na primer, Zemljino magnetno polje nastaje od naelektrisanih topljenih metala

circulating in the planet's outer core.

koji kruže u spoljašnjem jezgru planete.

Similarly, the Sun’s magnetic field is generated by large convective movements

Slično tome, Sunčevo magnetno polje nastaje velikim konvektivnim pokretima

in the plasma that composes the star.

u plazmi koja sačinjava ovu zvezdu.

As this plasma slowly swirls,

Kako se ova plazma polako kovitla,

it creates areas of intense magnetic activity called sunspots.

ona stvara oblasti jake magnetne aktivnosti koje se zovu Sunčeve pege.

The magnetic fields that form near these regions

Magnetna polja koja se formiraju u blizini ovih oblasti

often become twisted and strained.

često postaju uvrnuta i napregnuta.

And when they’re stretched too far, they snap into simpler configurations,

A kada se previše razvuku, ona pucaju u jednostavnije konfiguracije,

releasing energy that launches plasma from the Sun’s surface.

oslobađajući energiju koja ispušta plazmu sa Sunčeve površine.

These explosions are known as coronal mass ejections.

Ove eksplozije su poznate kao koronalne eksplozije.

The plasma— mostly made of protons and electrons— accelerates rapidly,

Plazma— većinom sačinjena od protona i elektrona— se naglo ubrzava,

quickly reaching thousands of kilometers per second.

brzo dostižući hiljade kilometara po sekundi.

A typical coronal mass ejection covers the distance between the Sun and the Earth

Tipična koronalna eksplozija pokriva razdaljinu između Sunca i Zemlje

in just a couple of days,

za samo nekoliko dana,

flowing along the magnetic field that permeates the solar system.

tako što teče duž magnetnog polja koje prožima Sunčev sistem.

And those that cross the Earth’s path are drawn to its magnetic field lines,

A one koje prelaze Zemljinu putanju su privučene linijama njenog magnetnog polja,

falling into the atmosphere around the planet’s magnetic poles.

te upadaju u atmosferu oko njenih magnetnih polova.

This tidal wave of high-energy particles excites atmospheric atoms

Ovaj plimni talas čestica visoke energije pobuđuje atmosferske atome

such as oxygen and nitrogen,

poput kiseonika i azota,

causing them to rapidly shed photons at various energy levels.

uzrokujući da brzo odbacuju fotone na različitim nivoima energije.

The result is a magnificent light show we know as the auroras.

Rezultat je veličanstveni svetlosni šou nama poznat kao aurora.

And while this phenomenon is usually only visible near the Earth’s poles,

I dok je ovaj fenomen uglavnom jedino vidljiv u blizini polova,

strong solar storms can bring in enough high energy particles

jake solarne oluje mogu doneti dovoljno čestica visoke energije

to light up large stretches of the sky.

da osvetle velike površine neba.

The magnetic fields in our solar system are nothing

Magnetna polja u našem Sunčevom sistemu su ništa

compared to those found in deep space.

naspram onih u dubokom svemiru.

Some neutron stars generate fields 100 billion times stronger

Neke neutronske zvezde stvaraju polja 100 milijardi puta jača

than those found in sunspots.

od onih u Sunčevim pegama.

And the magnetic fields around supermassive black holes

A magnetna polja oko supermasivnih crnih rupa

expel jets of gas that extend for thousands of light years.

izbacuju mlazove gasa koji se prostire hiljadama svetlosnih godina.

However, on Earth, even weak solar storms can be surprisingly dangerous.

Međutim, na Zemlji, i slabe solarne oluje mogu biti iznenađujuće opasne.

While the storms that reach us are generally harmless to humans,

Dok su oluje koje dospevaju do nas uglavnom bezopasne za ljude,

the high-energy particles falling into the atmosphere

čestice visoke energije koje padaju u atmosferu

create secondary magnetic fields,

stvaraju sekundarna magnetna polja,

which in turn generate rogue currents that short-circuit electrical equipment.

koja onda stvaraju odbegle struje koje dovode do kratkog spoja električne opreme.

During the Carrington Event,

Tokom Karingtonovog događaja,

the only widespread electrical technology was the telegraph.

jedina široko rasprostranjena električna tehnologija bio je telegraf.

But since then, we've only become more dependent on electrical systems.

Ali od tada, postali smo sve više zavisni od električnih sistema.

In 1921, another powerful solar storm caused telephones

Godine 1921, još jedna jaka solarna oluja izazvala je da telefoni

and telegraph equipment around the globe to combust.

i telegrafska oprema širom sveta eksplodiraju.

In New York, the entire railway system was shut down and fires broke out

U Njujorku, čitav železnički sistem je bio obustavljen i izbili su požari

in the central control building.

u središnjoj kontrolnoj zgradi.

Comparatively weak storms in 1989 and 2003

Relativno slabe oluje 1989. i 2003. godine

turned off regions of the Canadian power grid

gase delove kanadske električne mreže

and damaged multiple satellites.

i nanose štetu na više satelita.

If we were hit by a storm as strong as the Carrington Event today,

Kada bi nas danas pogodila oluja jaka koliko i Karingtonov događaj,

it could devastate our interconnected, electrified planet.

mogla bi uništiti našu međusobno povezanu, naelektrisanu planetu.

Fortunately, we're not defenseless.

Srećom, nismo bespomoćni.

After centuries of observing sunspots,

Nakon vekova posmatranja Sunčevih pega,

researchers have learned the Sun’s usual magnetic activity

istraživači su uvideli da Sunčeva tipična magnetna aktivnost

follows an 11-year cycle,

prati ciklus od 11 godina,

giving us a window into when solar storms are most likely to occur.

što nam daje uvid u to kada solarne oluje imaju najveće šanse da se pojave.

And as our ability to forecast space weather has improved,

I kako se naša sposobnost prognoze svemirskog vremena poboljšavala,

so have our mitigation measures.

isto se desilo i sa merama ublažavanja.

Power grids can be shut off in advance of a solar storm,

Električne mreže se mogu isključiti pre solarne oluje,

while capacitors can be installed to absorb the sudden influx of energy.

dok se kondenzatori mogu ugraditi tako da apsorbuju nagli priliv energije.

Many modern satellites and spacecraft are equipped with special shielding

Mnogi savremeni sateliti i letelice opremljeni su posebnom zaštitom

to absorb the impact of a solar storm.

koja apsorbuje uticaj solarne oluje.

But even with these safeguards,

Ali čak i sa ovim merama zaštite,

it’s hard to say how our technology will fare during the next major event.

teško je reći kako će naša tehnologija podneti sledeći veliki događaj.

It’s possible we’ll be left with only the aurora overhead

Moguće je da će nam jedino preostati polarna svetlost iznad nas

to light the path forward.

da nam obasja put napred.