On 1 September 1859 the English amateur astronomer Richard Carrington was sketching sunspots when two patches of intense white light flared on the Sun for about five minutes. Less than a day later the strongest geomagnetic storm on record struck the Earth. Auroras were seen as far south as the Caribbean, and telegraph systems failed across Europe and North America, with operators reporting sparks and even messages sent with the batteries disconnected. A similar storm today could damage satellites and power grids, so the event is the benchmark for space-weather planning.
Before and after
- 22 May 1859Birth of Arthur Conan Doyle
- 24 June 1859The Battle of Solferino inspires the Red Cross
- 4 August 1859Birth of Knut Hamsun
- 27 August 1859Edwin Drake drills the first commercial oil well
- 1 September 1859The Carrington solar storm
- from 16 October 1859 to 18 October 1859John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
- 18 October 1859Birth of Henri Bergson
- 20 October 1859Birth of John Dewey
- from 25 October 1859 to 1 January 1862Prussian expedition to East Asia (1859-1862)
More in Universe & space
- 17 January 1786Discovery of Comet Encke
- 7 August 1839Founding of Pulkovo Observatory
- 10 October 1845Founding of United States Naval Academy
- 16 July 1862Discovery of Comet Swift–Tuttle
- 3 April 1867Discovery of Tempel 1
- 27 January 1908Discovery of Pasiphae
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 19th century.