Dangerous Space
This is the text version of the interactive 3D documentary. 한국어
Danger ranking › The Sun
The Sun
The Sun #1 · A huge solar storm could knock out power grids, satellites and communications
View in 3D- Name
- Sun
- Type
- Main-sequence star (G-type)
- Size
- About 1.39 million km across
- Distance
- 150 million km from Earth · light takes 8 min 19 s (Average distance 1 AU)
The story in 3 scenes
The Carrington Event
On 1 September 1859, British astronomer Richard Carrington recorded a bright white flash on the Sun’s surface — the first time anyone had seen one. The next day the strongest geomagnetic storm on record hit Earth. Auroras were seen even in the tropics, and telegraph lines failed in many places.
Why?Along with the flash (a solar flare), the Sun threw out a huge cloud of hot, charged gas (a coronal mass ejection). It reached Earth’s magnetic field in less than a day.
What nextBack then, the telegraph was almost the only electrical system. A storm that size today could damage power grids, satellites and GPS all at once.
See this scene in 3D →The Quebec blackout
In March 1989, a strong geomagnetic storm hit the power grid in Quebec, Canada. The grid collapsed in 90 seconds, and about 6 million people were without electricity for 9 hours.
Why?A geomagnetic storm makes electric currents flow between long power lines and the ground. These currents overheated transformers and set off safety switches.
What nextAfter this, power companies started building space-weather forecasts into how they run the grid.
See this scene in 3D →Forty satellites fall
In February 2022, SpaceX launched 49 Starlink satellites. A fairly mild geomagnetic storm caused up to 40 of them to fall back into the atmosphere.
Why?The storm heated and puffed up the upper atmosphere, making the air thicker at low altitude. The satellites hadn’t climbed to their final height yet and couldn’t overcome the extra drag.
What nextWith thousands of satellites now in low orbit, solar activity has become an everyday hazard for space traffic.
See this scene in 3D →Sources
Wikipedia: Carrington Event · Wikipedia: March 1989 geomagnetic storm · NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
Impact-threat rankings and probabilities follow NASA/JPL’s Sentry risk table (as of 2026-11-04). The other categories are editorial rankings using the published criteria. Distances to stars can carry large uncertainties.