The sun goes through a cycle every 11 years or so and it will be peaking around December 21, 2012. This is called "solar maximum".
Well a question you might ask is "how does this affect me?" If we get hit by these solar flares America's already weak power grid will go down. Impacts would be felt on interdependent infrastructures with, for example, potable water distribution affected within several hours; perishable foods and medications lost in 12-24 hours; immediate or eventual loss of heating/air conditioning, sewage disposal, phone service, transportation, fuel resupply and so on," the report states.
Outages could take months to fix, the researchers say. Banks might close, and trade with other countries might halt. Emergency services would be strained, and command and control might be lost.
The prediction is based in part on a major solar storm in 1859 that caused telegraph wires to short out in the United States and Europe, igniting widespread fires. It was perhaps the worst in the past 200 years, according to the new study, and with the advent of modern power grids and satellites, much more is at risk.
