The Sun-cast

“It’s pretty, but I want to watch cartoons,” Freddy complained to his dad who was trying to point out the ethereal colors of the aurora borealis to his six-year-old son. “When are we going to be able to watch TV again? When will the computer work? I’m bored of going to bed so early. Can’t we keep the candles lit?”

Malcom understood the nightly ritual of his son asking these questions, but after five weeks it was wearing him out. It was tough for their son to understand how the largest coronal mass ejection in recorded history had unleashed geomagnetic storms that severely damaged a third of the world’s electrical systems. Well over two billion people worldwide were still without power. Electrical grids of all sizes were seriously compromised, and it was going to be a long time before things returned to normal — if they ever did. The sun continued to roil and storm, interfering with global efforts to rebuild its damaged networks.

There was no denying the haunting beauty of the nightly display of highly charged particles arcing through earth’s upper atmosphere. Malcom had never experienced the Northern Lights before and would never have expected to see them in northern California. But, he’d trade its splendor in a flash to have the electricity back on, even for a few hours a day.

He had to admit that they were luckier than most. Living on the coast provided them access to fresh seafood and firewood. However, it was getting tougher as folks began migrating their way. Pressures were building on the available food supply and sources for heat. Folks were even talking about scavenging for wood and game in the state and national parks and forests. Everywhere people were grumbling and beginning to shift from the selfless help of the initial weeks of the emergency to a withdrawn, suspicious and sometimes militant stance.

Considerations for long-term survival were making everyone wary and pushing some into criminal behavior. Despite this, most folks still gathered in the dusk to watch the aurora borealis dance. Then they’d return to their dimly lit homes to tune in on portable radios to what Malcom and his neighbors had begun calling the sun-cast: the nightly update on the mammoth coronal mass ejections and how these hyperactive solar flares were holding the world hostage.

It was one of the reasons that they gathered nightly to watch the Northern Lights. They were hoping for them to dissipate or disappear. That would be a good sign. A sign that the sun was calming down and they’d be able to get their electricity back on soon. But the sun-cast didn’t seem to be changing, and repairs to the local grids kept faltering. Freddy grew more and more whiny and his wife, Heather, looked more disconsolate each evening.

What was going to fix this? Malcolm anxiously wondered. He lit a single candle and began cranking their emergency radio to give it enough charge to listen to the evening update. The static was heavier than usual. Not encouraging. And the crackly news that finally came through was worse. Scientists studying the coronal mass ejections had come to the conclusion that this was the beginning of an extended period of volatile solar activity which could last many years. Many damaged grids would need new shielding technologies to protect them from the heightened solar volatility.

The sun-cast outlook: gloomy with a chance of doom.

Malcom switched off the radio. He was done waiting for a better day. He took his wife in one hand and Freddy in the other. He led them outside where they stood under the clear endless sky. To the north, it was lit in phosphorescent bands. Their new and beautiful reality. Directly overhead and to the south, the stars blazed without number. No light pollution blocked their glory.

It was time to face the new reality. His son might miss his television and computer. His wife might be saddened by a future she’d never imagined. But, Malcom knew, from here on out, he had to make his own forecast.

The sun would shine, the earth would turn, and humanity would adapt, if folks really stayed tuned to one another.