Near Miss: The Solar Superstorm of July 2012 | Science Mission Directorate
Published: Near Miss: The Solar Superstorm of July 2012 July 23, 2014: If an asteroid big enough to knock modern civilization back to the 18th century appeared out of deep space and buzzed the Earth-Moon system, the near-miss would be instant worldwide headline news. Two years ago, Earth experienced a close shave just as perilous, but most newspapers didn't mention it. The "impactor" was an extreme solar storm, the most powerful in as much as 150+ years. "If it had hit, we would still be picking up the pieces," says Daniel Baker of the University of Colorado. A ScienceCast video recounts ...
Source: nasa.gov