# 6269
Although the sun is relatively quiet this week the next solar maximum – a period of greatest solar activity (sun spots, flares, CMEs) that occurs roughly every 11 years – is expected early in 2013.
It is during these solar maximums where the earth is at greatest risk of experiencing a major solar flare, something that if strong enough, could adversely affect satellites in orbit, sensitive electronics on the ground, and even the electrical grid.
Scientists at NASA, NOAA, and other agencies . . . including FEMA . . . take the potential for destructive Solar storms very seriously, and in early 2010 FEMA held a major table-top exercise in anticipation of the upcoming solar maximum (see Solar Storms, CMEs & FEMA).
But despite some of the more dire warnings on the internet, NASA is quick to remind us that a damaging solar flare – while possible – may be decades away.
With the interest in the upcoming solar maximum running high, NASA has put together five short videos and a PDF book on the sun, which is available on their Stars & Our Sun webpage.
The five videos are:
Each segment runs about 5 minutes in length, and all incorporate impressive graphics and informative narration. According to the press release, these videos have already won a number of prestigious awards prior to their public release.
I confess that I’m enough of a science geek to greatly appreciate these kind of films. My fascination with science goes back to the still delightful Bell System Science series of the 1950s, which introduced my post-war baby boom generation to science and research.
For a simpler retro look at the sun, and to compare how much we’ve learned over the past 54 years (in science and filmmaking), you may enjoy watching the classic educational film OUR MR. SUN from 1956, staring Dr. Frank Baxter and Eddie Albert which is available on the Internet Archive.
Dr. Research (Frank Baxter)
What this old film lacks in 21st century science, it makes up with charm.
