Asked by: Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Callanan on 6 June (HL7991), what assessment they have made of (1) the size and power of the coronal mass ejection (CME) of 12 March in comparison to that of the “Carrington Event” of 1859, and (2) the impact this CME would have had if it had travelled towards, rather than away from, the Earth.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Met Office is responsible for advising the Government of the likelihood and impact of Severe Space Weather, such as coronal mass ejections. An event like that of 12 March travelling towards Earth would have global impacts on key sectors including energy, telecommunications and transport. The Met Office Severe Space Weather Scales set out further information on the potential impacts.
Asked by: Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the reasonable worst case scenario for a solar flare; and what consideration they have given to (1) the Carrington Event of 1859, and (2) the coronal mass ejection of 12 March 2023.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The National Security Risk Assessment includes the reasonable worst case scenario assessing the impacts of severe space weather phenomena, such as solar flares, on essential services. This was updated in 2022 and reflects the latest scientific and engineering knowledge, including appropriate historical data from the Carrington Event.
Met Office modelling suggests that the coronal mass ejection of 12 March 2023 erupted from the far-side of the Sun travelling away from the Earth, at a similar speed to the Carrington event of 1859.