It's a logistical and maintenance issue but not a world-ending threat. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) damaged transformers and other grid infrastructure in Sweden, South Africa, Quebec, and New York, as recently as 2003. There's concern that damaged transformers take a long time to repair or replace, but utilities do maintain small stockpiles.
An early warning system would help mitigate damage, giving us the ability to shut down threatened grid systems before space weather can inflict any damage. As far as I know, no one has ever demonstrated that consumer electronics would be threated by such an event, but I suppose it's possible.
It's a logistical and maintenance issue but not a world-ending threat. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) damaged transformers and other grid infrastructure in Sweden, South Africa, Quebec, and New York, as recently as 2003. There's concern that damaged transformers take a long time to repair or replace, but utilities do maintain small stockpiles.
An early warning system would help mitigate damage, giving us the ability to shut down threatened grid systems before space weather can inflict any damage. As far as I know, no one has ever demonstrated that consumer electronics would be threated by such an event, but I suppose it's possible.