The UK is close to having its first ground-based space weather monitor in a generation, amid warnings of potentially catastrophic solar storms which could knock out power across the planet, and ‘fry’ electronic communications systems.
The UK is close to having its first ground-based space weather monitor in a generation, amid warnings of potentially catastrophic solar storms which could knock out power across the planet, and ‘fry’ electronic communications systems.
Lancaster University scientists, alongside the UK Atomic Energy Authority and UK businesses, have developed a new type of ground level neutron monitor which will be the first such device in the UK for over 30 years.
An announcement is expected later this summer on a site at a Met Office or British Geological Survey (BGS) field station where it will stream data to the UK Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre (MOSWOC) – one of three space weather forecasting centres in the world.
The £1.26m ground level detector project is part of a major drive, funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), to enhance the Met Office’s ability to predict and protect safety critical systems and national infrastructure.
The Lancaster University team behind the new detector are exhibiting at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in London (6-10 July), a free public event where cutting-edge UK research from leading scientists around the country is shared.
Read more at: Lancaster University
A massive Coronal Mass Ejection from the sun (Photo Credit: NASA)
