Uncommon bursts of solar storms might lead to chaos on the rail network due to the emergence of “powerful magnetic disturbances” as cautioned by scientists, BBC reported.
Study reveals solar storms threaten rail network chaos, causing signals to change from red to green
A research study conducted at Lancaster University discovered that these space events could interfere with the electrical systems of the rail network, causing signals to change from red to green.
The UK has over 50,000 signaling track circuits, where the signal is managed through an electrical circuit between the rails, Sky News reported.
According to lead researcher Cameron Patterson, the rail industry should take these “relatively rare” storms seriously. On the other hand, Network Rail believes the risk is “very small.”
Solar storms occur when high-energy particles from the Sun explosively hit the Earth. They have the potential to disrupt technology and power grids, as evidenced by a solar flare causing a nine-hour blackout for millions in the Canadian province of Quebec in 1989.
According to Cameron, their research shows that “space weather poses a serious, if relatively rare, risk to the rail signalling system, which could cause delays or even have more critical, safety implications.”
“This natural hazard needs to be taken seriously. By their nature, high-impact, low-frequency events are hard to plan for, but ignoring them is rarely the best way forward.”
Network Rail downplays solar storm risk amid limited resources
Martin Frobisher, Network Rail’s group safety and engineering director, told Sky News while solar storms were a “theoretical risk”, the company considered it to be “very small”.
“We need to focus our limited resources on higher priority issues such as climate change and security threats,” he added.
Cameron has previously studied “right side” failures, where the signal changes from green to red. While this isn’t risky, the opposite, “wrong side” failures, where the signal switches from red to green, pose a greater danger.
The recent study, featured in the journal Space Weather, revealed that “wrong side” failures could occur at a lower geoelectric field strength compared to “right side” failures. This implies that a less intense geomagnetic storm could more readily cause “wrong side” failures.
