Sarah PJ White, Author

I never cease to be amazed by the natural wonders of our universe. Meteor showers, the Northern lights and solar flares are just some of these amazing events that show the sheer power of the world we live in.

The writer in me loves it when these events are recorded in the media, as it gives rise to that age old question of ‘what if?’ You could spend days dreaming up all sorts of scenarios related to that one question. What if these solar flares got bigger? What if the geomagnetic storming affected plane routes and power grids? What if the Northern lights were pulled further south?

According to the MSN news report (http://news.uk.msn.com/world/solar-radiation-storm-hits-earth) the sun has cycles of storm activity, with an average cycle lasing 11 years.

Each cycle has two extremes – known as solar maximum and solar minimum. The solar minimum has less activity, with fewer solar flares and CMEs (coronel mass ejections – which cause high levels of radiation). The solar maximum has much more solar activity, more radiation and more solar solar weather - and we are heading towards a solar maximum in 2013.

Solar weather can cause blackouts that last for weeks – months even – and a severe solar storm can cause a global hurricane Katrina, according to Sir John Beddington, the government’s chief scientific advisor.

Many leading scientists have stated that we as a planet are totally ill-prepared for a severe solar storm. And as we are now so reliant on using electricity – with satellites, GPS and power grids – my question of the day is ‘what if…?’

Tags: meteor showers, northern lights, power of the universe, question of what if, sarah pj white, solar flares, solar maximum, solar minimum, solar weather, space weather, sun, weather, what if, writer, writer questions, writing