The Cosmic Ray Division of Yerevan Physics Institute offers an alert service to warn of severe radiation storms. Last year the Sun reached its maximum in the 11-year solar cycle, and during the coming 2-3 years the probability of Sun Energetic Phenomena (SEP), including intensive fluxes of Solar particles, will increase. Some SEP could be strong enough to harm satellite electronics and the crew of the space station. The CRD alert system is based on continuous monitoring of the highest energy Solar particles, thus offering the advantage of forecasting severe radiation storms several dozen minutes before the bulk of the middle energy particle fluxes reach the Earth.

Tomorrow, when the Earth most probably will evidence geomagnetic storms originating from the "cannibal" eruption registered by satellite detectors on March 25, the CRD solar storm alert system will be put on trial to detect a possible decrease of galactic cosmic ray fluxes due to the "screening" effect of a huge approaching Solar plasma cloud. See "Fast-moving solar eruptions that overtake and devour their slower-moving kin can trigger long-lasting geomagnetic storms --and dazzling auroras-- when they strike Earth's magnetosphere." (NASA Science News for March 27, 2001. For the full story visit http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast27mar_1.htm?list39864 .
Interested clients can subscribe to our trial alert service at http://crdlx5.yerphi.am/sec/alert/trial.html where there is a brief description of the alert methodology and description of services offered.