Solar storms break millions of smart devices

https://memfault.com/blog/solar-storms-break-millions-of-smart-devices/

by fra • 2 years ago

17 4 2 years ago

The solar storm didn't break anything. they report it caused more devices to restart than normal.

fra• 2 years ago

Fair - the definition of "break" is a bit weak in this case. I'd argue that this caused real problems for many of these devices, but we did not share data that shows that.

pfdietz• 2 years ago

I am dubious radiation could be the explanation here. If anything, solar storms should cause a reduction in galactic cosmic radiation ("Forbush Decrease"), which would reduce radiation at the surface, not increase it.

They should analyze devices at higher elevation or higher latitude, where radiation effects from solar protons would be more important. Also, they should consider the effect on IoT devices of voltage fluctuations on the grid.

k310• 2 years ago

The author disclaims the click-bait headline. It's about ECC memory and software resets. And when did we hear that before? ( Ask Sun )

And it's a company blog. The kind with "Pricing" at the top.

Yes, GPS was impacted. I am reminded of something we learned at Sun. When educators say "It doesn't work", it often means "It doesn't work the way I need it to." Educators are slammed with work, and don't have time or energy to debug your products, nor adapt to them. They just want it to work the way they need it to and hence, want it to.

Like a useful tool.

Solar storms break millions of smart devices

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