SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at the risk of solar superstorms.
New Studies Warn of Cataclysmic Solar Superstorms
Scientific American reports: New Studies Warn of Cataclysmic Solar Superstorms — New data suggest the New York Railroad Storm could have surpassed the intensity of the famous Carrington Event of 1859. Here’s how the article begins:
“A powerful disaster-inducing geomagnetic storm is an inevitability in the near future, likely causing blackouts, satellite failures, and more. Unlike other threats to our planet, such as supervolcanoes or asteroids, the time frame for a cataclysmic geomagnetic storm—caused by eruptions from our sun playing havoc with Earth’s magnetic field—is comparatively short. It could happen in the next decade—or in the next century. All we know is, based on previous events, our planet will almost definitely be hit relatively soon, probably within 100 years.
Geomagnetic storms are caused by sunspots, solar flares and coronal mass ejections, resulting in calamities to which our modern technological society is becoming ever more susceptible. Most experts regard the Carrington Event, a so-called superstorm that occurred in September 1859, as the most powerful geomagnetic storm on record. But new data suggest that a later storm in May 1921 may have equaled or even eclipsed the Carrington Event in intensity, causing at least three major fires in the U.S., Canada and Sweden—and highlighting the damaging effects these storms can have on Earth today.
In a paper published in the journal Space Weather, Jeffrey Love of the U.S. Geological Survey and his colleagues reexamined the intensity of the 1921 event, known as the New York Railroad Storm, in greater detail than ever before. Although different measures of intensity exist, geomagnetic storms are often rated on an index called disturbance storm time (Dst)—a way of gauging global magnetic activity by averaging out values for the strength of Earth’s magnetic field measured at multiple locations. Our planet’s baseline Dst level is about –20 nanoteslas (nT), with a “superstorm” condition defined as occurring when levels fall below –250 nT. Studies of the very limited magnetic data from the Carrington Event peg its intensity at anywhere from –850 to –1,050 nT. According to Love’s study, the 1921 storm, however, came in at about –907 nT. “The 1921 storm could have been more intense than the 1859 storm,” Love says. “Prior to our paper, [the 1921 storm] was understood to be intense, but how intense wasn’t really clear.”
Some Food Shortages Ahead?
SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson spotted this news: India: Modi government’s onion export ban a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction. Mike’s Comment: Also, China has bought Smithfield and is reportedly shipping all processed pork carcasses overseas to replace those lost to disease epidemic. Combined with early flooding in the US this year, expect many food prices to rise this winter.
The Real Biden-Ukraine Timeline
Over at the great Whatfinger.com: news aggregation site: Sean Hannity breaks down the Biden-Ukraine timeline. JWR’s Comment: The leftist mass media is doing their best to vilify DJT. Don’t fall for their lies, smears, and half-truths. And be cautious of where you get your news. Fox News and The Drudge Report have both noticeably shifted to the left in recent months. That is one reason why I’ve made Whatfinger.com my primary news aggregation source.
The Oldest Working Electric Stove?
Reader H.L. sent us this: Is This the Oldest Working Stove in the U.S.?
Arrows and Smartphones: The Amazon Tembe Tribe
Another hat tip to H.L. for this one: Arrows and smartphones: daily life of Amazon Tembe tribe
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Re: Oldest stove…
Be careful showing off your ‘energy sucking appliances’, you may be forced to replace them or face ‘carbon penalties’ and/or exorbitant fines. Other than that, they’re pretty cool.
Solar Storms: A very real and dangerous threat. Not one to be downplayed or ignored. The worst part is the likelihood and inevitability.
Tick tock.
Yes, and the most noteworthy point is that the Carrington Event happened in the midst of an extended solar minimum. (Just like the present-day solar conditions.)
Glenn Beck has done one of his famous chalkboards on the Ukraine drama. This is not about the Biden’s, yes they are involved. But the rabbit hole is deeper. If you want a better understanding, I suggest to look up this YouTube video.
I also have noticed this shift to the left by Fox News and Drudge. Have already started getting my news elsewhere. Thanks for the information on Whatfinger.com
Re. Oldest Working Electric Stove?
Wow! That is a beauty.
I also thank you for the Whatfinger recommendation. Money eventually leaks into everything and Fox has been under pressure from advertisers to moderate. They have gone too far for me and a lost audience ultimately means a lost message. Soros wins another battle.
Food shortages and politics amaze me. Correct me if I am wrong, but I had been taught (yes, I am over 70 anos) that the United States held the bread basket of the world and the best farming technology on Earth. If the U.S. can feed the world, it makes President Trump’s tariff’s seem more than fair. If President Trump was mean spirited he could ask China to pay dearly for a bushel of grain. How does a million dollars per bushel of corn sound?
And if no country buys, we could pay our farmers to fill all the silos ……. like they used to be. That’s what I call prepping.
But, what do I know?
The corn we have promoted and incentivised to grow is not food. You cannot walk through the corn rows and pluck an ear of corn and eat it as you walk.
The corn we see is either fuel or must be pumped with “flavorings” in order to be consumed.
I haven’t even broached the subject of genetic modification yet.
We can’t even find clean, pure as God intended sweet corn here in Colorado anymore.
I remember as a child we could get ten ears for a dollar. We used to cook up corn by the pot full and grill it in the shuck and eat ear after ear of the sweetest purest corn and spend the next hour picken your teeth.
Tear in my eye. Please come quickly Lord Jesus. We are off the old paths and it isn’t getting better.
if you can grow you own heirloom corn–you can do it again ! ! !
I don’t believe that any foreign country or foreign national should be allowed to buy an American company/farm/land etc. period. It is contrary to American and citizens interest.
Solar storm, reminds me of the end of Escape from LA. Snake Pliskin had it right. Sooner or later, someone needs to push the button, or mother nature might do it for us. Seems the only way we the people win is if the big reset shuts it all down. Reminds me of the end of Fight club that way too, I suppose.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Welcome to the human race.
If and when we are hit with a major pulse that catcalysmicaly takes out a huge swath of the planet’s electrical assets, HOW will any of us know if it was an EMP, or CME, let alone who may be responsible if EMP? I am sure these questions will be on the forefront of astute survivors minds. Shortwave Radio perhaps?
What about those without access to shortwave radio?