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Saturday, 19 February, 2000, 20:38 GMT
National grid gets space protection
By BBC News Online's Damian Carrington in Washington DC
The world's first space weather prediction system for national electrical power grids has been installed in England and Wales.
"These systems are even more vulnerable now [due to greater reliance on more sensitive electronic systems] and we are not going to grow out of this any day soon." Advance warning The system Metatech has installed in England and Wales "continuously updates on a one minute basis - it needs to be that regular". The predictions are based on information from space satellites, in particular a US one called Ace. This is positioned more than one and a half million kilometres (one million miles) nearer the Sun than Earth, and records any adverse radiation or magnetic energy travelling towards out planet.
The primary problem caused to power grids is losing control of voltage regulation. However, Mr Kappenman said, with these warnings nations may be able to assess which regions are likely to be most stressed and then boost the voltage regulation systems in those areas. Saving dollars Longer-term forecasts are still rather tentative, but data from Japanese and European satellites are helping them to improve.
"During space storms the atmosphere thickens, dragging the satellites into lower orbits and they then have to be boosted back up. If predictions mean that the boost can be done before the storm, then much less fuel would be used. This means a satellite's lifespan could be extended - that's a way of turning these predictions into dollars."
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18 Feb 00 | Washington 2000
19 Feb 00 | Washington 2000
18 Feb 00 | Science/Nature
07 Feb 00 | Science/Nature
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