Spacecraft and Ground Anomalies Related to the October-November 2003 Solar Activity

Space Weather 2, S03008, 2004

Spacecraft and Ground Anomalies Related to the October-November 2003 Solar Activity

D. Webb
Air Force Research Laboratory, Hanscom Air Force Base, MA, USA

J. Allen
NOAA, Boulder, CO, USA

Abstract

During two weeks in late October and early November 2003, a series of large solar events led to high levels of energetic particles in geospace and produced overlapping large geomagnetic storms on 28-30 October. These storms caused effects ranging from power grid failures to satellite shutdowns. A Japanese satellite was lost completely, the U. S. Federal Aviation Administration issued their first-ever high radiation dosage alert for high-altitude aircraft, and astronauts in the International Space Station had to retreat into their heavily shielded service module.