Got GPS? Solar Flares, Activity Cycle Increasing?

[windcatcher]

LINK

Today we have a more scientific explanation for the polar lights, known as aurora borealis in the Northern Hemisphere and aurora australis in the Southern: the effect is caused by charged particles from the sun colliding with the Earth's magnetic field.

This phenomenon is just one side effect of what is called space weather. The fact is that the Earth is constantly pelted with radiation from the sun, which can play havoc with a society that is increasingly dependent on its high-tech toys.

But for hikers, drivers, pilots and ship's captains, perhaps the biggest concern is that interference from the solar radiation could mislead or disable their global positioning system (GPS) signal.

proverbial

 

[AntennaFarmer]

They recently started shutting down the LORAN-C network.

http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/Loran/default.htm

LORAN-C is the ground based system used for many years before GPS came along. That pretty well leaves no backup system to GPS. Of course - GPS is highly reliable....

A.F.