Solar storms, powerful bursts of energy from the Sun, have long been a source of concern for scientists. As a result of their operation, serious disruptions to the electrical and communication infrastructure may occur. In response to this challenge, NASA, a leading space agency, has introduced an innovative early warning system based on artificial intelligence models.
The foundation of this approach is to take advantage of the difference in the speed of light relative to the solar material emitted during these storms. This speed advantage makes it possible to predict an approaching storm at least 30 minutes in advance, allowing you to take the necessary precautions.
To carry out this ambitious project, the NASA research team used data from various Sun-observing satellites, including ACE, Wind, IMP-8 and Geotail. While these instruments already provide information about solar flares that can lead to storms, predicting the exact effects of such an event is key to understanding a storm's potential impact on Earth.
Hence the need to include in the analysis data from ground stations that have recorded the effects of previous solar storms in the past. The mentioned data served as training material for a deep learning model called DAGGER. Compared to traditional algorithms, DAGGER offers much higher speed and accuracy of predictions.
Led by Vishal Upendran from the Inter-University Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics in India, the research team achieved impressive results. The DAGGER model can determine the strength and direction of an approaching solar storm in less than a second, and makes forecasts every minute.
An additional innovation is DAGGER's ability to quickly forecast for the entire Earth's surface, taking into account the computational complexity associated with predicting where a storm will hit. This is important because half of the Earth, the "night" side, is protected by the planet's mass from the direct effects of a solar storm.
This system was enthusiastically received by experts. Dr. Sarah Gibson from the National Center for Atmospheric Research highlighted the potential of the DAGGER model to revolutionize our ability to protect critical infrastructure.
NASA's ultimate goal is to continually refine and expand the capabilities of this system to provide comprehensive protection against the unpredictable and potentially devastating effects of solar storms. With advances in artificial intelligence and better monitoring of solar activity, the future of solar storm protection appears to be in good hands.
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