Abstract
AN unusual centre of solar activity was the seat of the most severe disturbances of the current solar cycle early in August 1972. It produced reports from the general public of various visual phenomena in the night sky, surges in electrical systems, radio blackouts and effects upon the navigation of birds in flight. Of the great variety of physical phenomena associated with this remarkable region (sunspot group 331, McMath plage region 11976, centred at Carrington, longitude 009 degrees), we will concentrate on a description of the gross features of the greatest cosmic ray storm ever observed that commenced on August 4, and of which sunspot group 331 was the ultimate source.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Pomerantz, M. A., Cosmic Rays (Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, 1971).
Pomerantz, M. A., Proc. US Nat. Acad. Sci., 58, 2136 (1967).
Pomerantz, M. A., J. Franklin Inst., 290, 209 (1970).
Stickland, A. C., Ann. IQSY, 7 (MIT Press, Cambridge, 1970).
Pomerantz, M. A., and Duggal, S. P., J. Geophys. Res., 77, 263 (1972).
Lockwood, J. A., Space Sci. Rev., 12, 658 (1971).
Duggal, S. P., and Pomerantz, M. A., J. Franklin Insf., 273, 322 (1962).
Pomerantz, M. A., Ann. IQSY, 6, 211 (MIT Press, Cambridge, 1969).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
POMERANTZ, M., DUGGAL, S. Physical Sciences: Record-breaking Cosmic Ray Storm stemming from Solar Activity in August 1972. Nature 241, 331–333 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1038/241331a0
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/241331a0
This article is cited by
-
The electrical environment of the Earth’s atmosphere: A review
Space Science Reviews (2004)
-
Discontinuous Change in Earth's Spin Rate following Great Solar Storm of August 1972
Nature (1973)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.