Two of the speakers at this year’s Society for Scientific Exploration online conference 2024 were Dr. Robert Schoch (Forgotten Civilization) and Bibhu Dev Misra (Yuga Shift), who presented unconventional science related to possible Earth changes. For the list of talks at this conference, go to the SSE conference page.
In a previous blog, I discussed some of the science behind the upcoming Earth changes, namely a change in interplanetary space/weather and a possible geomagnetic field reversal. In this blog, I examine the evidence for solar outbursts or a “micronova” in the Earth’s past and possible future, and the possible role of interstellar dust in this phenomenon.
3. Major solar outbursts and flares have occurred in the past, affecting the Earth, Moon and planets, and may occur in the future, with consequences for life on Earth.
In modern times, the Carrington event in 1859 was the most intense geomagnetic storm ever recorded; it was associated with a major solar flare visible to astronomers Richard Carrington and Richard Hodgson. The disturbance was so great that telegraph wires emitted sparks, causing fire in telegraph stations. During this event, the northern Aurora Borealis extended as far south as Cuba and Hawaii. More recently, a “Carrington-class” solar superstorm, composed of two coronal mass ejections (image below), occurred in July, 2012, just missing the Earth by nine days (Phillips, 2014; Sanders, 2014).
Solar flares/coronal mass ejections are a normal occurrence for stars, but ‘superflares’ or outbursts, including micronovas or novas, are also possible. Micronova is a recently described star phenomenon of surface explosions that are larger then normal flares but smaller in size and strength than a nova. A recent paper in Science found that superflares occur in Sun-like stars approximately every 100 years, so this type of Earth change is a real possibility in the near-term.
In recent years, the three closest stars to our Solar System (below, from the SuspiciousObservers YouTube channel) have displayed large outbursts, possibly triggered by an interstellar cloud or galactic current sheet. Ben Davidson has speculated that our Sun may be ‘next in line’.
Paul LaViolette, an astrophysicist, was one of the early researchers noting the potential hazard of a large solar flare. He hypothesized the importance of interstellar dust as a trigger of solar flares, based on his knowledge of T Tauri stars. Recent research has found that interstellar dust moves into the solar system periodically, with some large intrusions evident in polar ice samples. LaViolette proposed that intense cosmic ray emissions from the center of galaxies could create ‘superwaves’, pushing the dust into the solar system. Galactic cosmic ray emissions are now known to occur, and with levels large enough to cause species extinctions in the past.
In his book, Earth Under Fire, LaViolette described the findings of Dr. Han Kloosterman, who found a charred soil layer called the Usselo Horizon in the United Kingdom, Europe and North America. Both he and LaViolette feel that this layer is due to an enormous solar flare, or a tight series of solar outbursts, which reached the surface, inducing a global conflagration. This layer coincides with the Pleistocene mammal extinction, about 12,800 years ago, when the large mammals of North America went extinct. The image of scorched earth over a large portion of the planet has never left me! Here is a picture of the Usselo Horizon, also called the “black mat layer“. Note the black charred layer.
In Forgotten Civilization, geologist Robert Schoch and his wife Catherine Ulissey provide evidence that a solar outburst, or multiple outbursts, ended the last Ice Age and, most importantly, ended an early cycle of advanced civilization, leading to what they term a “Solar-Induced Dark Age” or SIDA.
Schoch discovered evidence for plasma strikes on the ground on the Giza Plateau in Egypt. An extreme solar outburst could create intense plasma activity and lightning strikes, with some electrical plasma actually striking the ground.
Plasma physicist Anthony Peratt made the observation that the petroglyphs of ancient civilizations seem to represent unusual solar phenomena, including Z-pinch plasma configurations. Schoch and Ulissey extend and highlight his work (figure below), noting that petroglyphs in Gobekli Tepe and Easter Island (Rongorongo figures) also seem to depict unusual solar phenomena.
The evidence suggests that solar activity was intense over a period of several hundred years coincident with these ancient civilizations. I have provided only a brief taste of the researchers who have studied solar outbursts and/or have proposed solar activity as a potential danger in our past and immediate future. This type of Earth change seems like a real concern and possibility.
References:
LaViolette, Paul (2005) Earth Under Fire: Humanity’s Survival of the Ice Age. Rochester, VT: Bear & Co.
Peratt, Anthony L. (2003) Characteristics for the Occurrence of a High-Current, Z-Pinch Aurora as Recorded in Antiquity. IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, 31(6): 1192-1214.
Phillips, Tony (2014) Near Miss: The Solar Superstorm of July 2012. https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/23jul_superstorm/
Sanders, Robert (2014) Fierce solar magnetic storm barely missed Earth in 2012. https://news.berkeley.edu/2014/03/18/fierce-solar-magnetic-storm-barely-missed-earth-in-2012/
Schoch, Robert M. (2021) Forgotten Civilization: New Discoveries on the Solar-Induced Dark Age. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions.
Vasilyev, V., T. Reinhold, A. I. Shapiro et al. (2024) Sun-like stars produce superflares roughly once per century. Science 386(6727): 1301-1305. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl5441
Photo credits:
Davidson, Ben (2024) The Catastrophe Evidence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sGPCMIQZLw&t=2101s
Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) of 23 July 2012 (Solar storm of 2012). (Image credit: NASA/STEREO)
Andre (2011) Exploring the Usselo Horizon in a Dutch Moor. https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/exploring-the-usselo-horizon-in-a-dutch-moor.505174/
Schoch, Robert M. (2021) Forgotten Civilization: New Discoveries on the Solar-Induced Dark Age. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions, page 305 and plate 24.