Title: Solar Storms Could Cause Train Accidents, New Study Warns
Whether it’s leaves on the line or signal failures, rail commuters regularly face issues while trying to get to work. But things could soon get much worse – thanks to space weather. A new study has warned that train accidents could be caused by solar storms switching signalling from red to green.
Cameron Patterson, a PhD researcher at Lancaster University and lead author of the study, stated, “Our research shows that space weather poses a serious, if relatively rare, risk to the rail signaling system, which could cause delays or even have more critical, safety implications. This natural hazard needs to be taken seriously.”
The researchers set out to understand how solar flares could affect the rail industry, focusing on two routes – the Preston to Lancaster section of the West Coast Main Line, and the Glasgow to Edinburgh line. Their models revealed how solar storms could create geomagnetically induced currents (GICs), which could interfere with electricity transmission and distribution grids. “Our research suggests that space weather is able to flip a signal in either direction, turning a red signal green or a green signal red,” Mr Patterson said.
According to their model, ‘wrong side’ failures could be triggered by weaker geomagnetic storms than ‘right side’ failures, occurring every one to two decades. The risk of these storms is expected to increase as we approach the ‘solar maximum’ – a peak in the Sun’s 11-year activity cycle – which is expected to arrive as soon as 2024.
Based on the findings, the team is calling on the rail industry to consider the risk of space weather and put measures in place to mitigate it. Professor Jim Wild, co-author of the study, remarked, “It’s important that the rail sector is included in this planning. As our understanding of the space weather hazard improves, it’s possible to consider how to reduce the risks. In the future, we could see space weather forecasting being used make decisions about limiting railway operations if an extreme event is expected, just as meteorological forecasts are used currently.”