1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:10,960 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. 3 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 2: Hello, and Welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. Wilson, 4 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:18,520 Speaker 2: and I'm Holly Frye. A few weeks ago, I was 5 00:00:18,560 --> 00:00:22,120 Speaker 2: thinking about our Octoberfest trip that is coming up later 6 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:27,080 Speaker 2: this year, and I suddenly wondered whether we might have 7 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:28,440 Speaker 2: a chance of seeing. 8 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:31,480 Speaker 3: The Aurora while we're there, partly. 9 00:00:31,200 --> 00:00:33,559 Speaker 2: Because one of the places will be staying seems like 10 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:36,479 Speaker 2: it will have maybe not as much light pollution as 11 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:39,320 Speaker 2: where I live, and also partly because I have a 12 00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:44,199 Speaker 2: really hard time visualizing how far north things are on 13 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:49,559 Speaker 2: other continents unless I'm actually looking at a globe. The 14 00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:53,800 Speaker 2: answer is that the aurora chances are roughly comparable to 15 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:57,920 Speaker 2: being at home in Massachusetts, which means unlikely but not impossible. 16 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:00,720 Speaker 2: The only time I have seen the aurora I was 17 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 2: in my own yard at home, so that's in spite 18 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:07,320 Speaker 2: of having tried to see them in Iceland while we 19 00:01:07,400 --> 00:01:11,080 Speaker 2: were there that didn't work out. During my quest to 20 00:01:11,120 --> 00:01:14,000 Speaker 2: get an answer to that question, though, I stumbled across 21 00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:17,559 Speaker 2: a reference to the Carrington event, and then a couple 22 00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:21,080 Speaker 2: of weeks later the Carrington event came up again in 23 00:01:21,240 --> 00:01:24,120 Speaker 2: a video game that I was playing, and I thought, 24 00:01:24,160 --> 00:01:28,759 Speaker 2: should that be an episode? The Carrington Event was a 25 00:01:28,880 --> 00:01:32,720 Speaker 2: massive geomagnetic storm that happened in eighteen fifty nine, and 26 00:01:32,760 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 2: in some ways it strikes me as a story of serendipity. 27 00:01:37,520 --> 00:01:41,440 Speaker 1: Most people who experienced the Carrington Event saw an aurora, 28 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:44,480 Speaker 1: including lots of people who lived in places where auroras 29 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:49,000 Speaker 1: do not normally appear. Although the words Aurora borealis and 30 00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:52,720 Speaker 1: Aurora australis were not coined until the early eighteenth century, 31 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:57,440 Speaker 1: there are written descriptions of phenomena that certainly sound like Aurora's. 32 00:01:57,520 --> 00:02:01,280 Speaker 1: Going back to the ancient world, the oldest might be 33 00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: an account of a five colored light in the sky, 34 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: which was recorded in China about three thousand years ago. 35 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:11,919 Speaker 1: Assyrian astrological records dating back to the seventh century BCE 36 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: describe a red glow at night. Aristotle's Meteorologica, which was 37 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,160 Speaker 1: written around three hundred and thirty BCE, describes the nighttime 38 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:26,400 Speaker 1: appearance of chasms and trenches in blood red, which sometimes 39 00:02:26,440 --> 00:02:28,720 Speaker 1: look like flames or moving torches. 40 00:02:29,639 --> 00:02:33,040 Speaker 2: All of those sound like they could definitely be describing 41 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 2: ben aurora or something else, but possibly today we know 42 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:44,040 Speaker 2: that Auroras are caused by interactions between charged particles from 43 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 2: the Sun and atoms in the. 44 00:02:45,960 --> 00:02:47,359 Speaker 3: Earth's upper atmosphere. 45 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:50,960 Speaker 2: Auroras are most common near the poles because the Earth's 46 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 2: magnetic field deflects those charged particles, and that field is 47 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:59,880 Speaker 2: weakest around the poles. But during this event, people saw 48 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:04,000 Speaker 2: Aurora's much closer to the equator than it usually appears, 49 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 2: including people who were living in the tropics. Astronomers and 50 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:12,120 Speaker 2: other people who were observing the Sun also noticed sun 51 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:16,239 Speaker 2: spots leading up to this event. Like descriptions of aurora's, 52 00:03:16,360 --> 00:03:20,080 Speaker 2: descriptions of sunspots go back to the ancient world. People 53 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 2: in China and Korea are known to have observed sunspots 54 00:03:23,880 --> 00:03:27,959 Speaker 2: as long ago as eight hundred BCE, but the oldest 55 00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:30,640 Speaker 2: known depiction of spots on the face of the Sun 56 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:34,360 Speaker 2: meaning a sketch not just a written description, is in 57 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:37,520 Speaker 2: the Chronicle of John of Worcester, which is an English 58 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:41,280 Speaker 2: text dating back to eleven twenty eight. There is also 59 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:44,000 Speaker 2: a Chinese account of a black spot on the Sun 60 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:47,360 Speaker 2: from a few months later. It may be describing the 61 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:51,200 Speaker 2: same spot, although it doesn't have an illustration to accompany it. 62 00:03:52,040 --> 00:03:55,400 Speaker 1: The first people known to observe and record sunspots through 63 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:59,960 Speaker 1: a telescope were past podcast subject Thomas Harriet and Galileo 64 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:03,600 Speaker 1: Galilee in the early seventeenth century. I just went to 65 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:04,760 Speaker 1: Galileo's tomb. 66 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 3: Oh. 67 00:04:08,320 --> 00:04:13,880 Speaker 2: By the nineteenth century, people were making systematic, methodical observations 68 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:18,600 Speaker 2: of sunspot activity. One was Samuel Heinrich Schwaba, who was 69 00:04:18,640 --> 00:04:23,480 Speaker 2: a pharmacist from Germany who started recording daily sunspot observations 70 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:27,159 Speaker 2: in eighteen twenty six. In eighteen twenty nine he sold 71 00:04:27,200 --> 00:04:30,040 Speaker 2: his pharmacy so he could work on astronomy full time, 72 00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:33,039 Speaker 2: and by eighteen forty four he had concluded that sun 73 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:37,719 Speaker 2: spots occur in ten year cycles. That number was later 74 00:04:37,760 --> 00:04:41,920 Speaker 2: adjusted to eleven years, but it's sometimes still referred to 75 00:04:42,080 --> 00:04:43,480 Speaker 2: as the Shaba cycle. 76 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:45,440 Speaker 3: One of the people who. 77 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:49,600 Speaker 2: Was inspired by Shwaba's work was Richard C. Carrington, who 78 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:54,039 Speaker 2: the Carrington event is named for. In addition to observing 79 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:58,400 Speaker 2: the aurora and sunspots, nineteenth century astronomers were observing the 80 00:04:58,440 --> 00:05:02,440 Speaker 2: Earth's magnetic field. The ability to do this started with 81 00:05:02,520 --> 00:05:06,520 Speaker 2: the discovery of the magnetic compass, in its simplest version, 82 00:05:06,640 --> 00:05:10,920 Speaker 2: a magnetized needle that orients itself in response to magnetic fields. 83 00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:14,840 Speaker 2: The first magnetic compasses date back to about two thousand 84 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:17,919 Speaker 2: years ago in China, and they were used for divination. 85 00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:21,680 Speaker 2: It wasn't until around the eleventh century that people started 86 00:05:21,760 --> 00:05:26,400 Speaker 2: using them for navigation, with magnetized devices that always oriented 87 00:05:26,440 --> 00:05:31,800 Speaker 2: themselves along a magnetic north south line. By the seventeenth century, 88 00:05:31,839 --> 00:05:35,120 Speaker 2: people were theorizing that the reason compasses could do this 89 00:05:35,800 --> 00:05:39,200 Speaker 2: was because the Earth had a magnetic field that magnetized 90 00:05:39,279 --> 00:05:42,799 Speaker 2: needles were responding to, and by the eighteenth century people 91 00:05:42,800 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 2: had noticed that this field seemed to fluctuate. Sometimes the 92 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:49,919 Speaker 2: compass needle would shift a tiny bit from where it 93 00:05:49,960 --> 00:05:52,320 Speaker 2: normally pointed, and then it would stay that way for 94 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 2: a while before shifting back. Or on ships traveling at sea, 95 00:05:57,120 --> 00:05:59,880 Speaker 2: the compass needle didn't always seem to point in a 96 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:03,640 Speaker 2: exactly the same direction, but people did not yet know 97 00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:08,400 Speaker 2: why this was. In the early nineteenth century, multiple people, 98 00:06:08,520 --> 00:06:12,880 Speaker 2: including William Scoresby and Carl Friedrich Gauss, developed magnetometers to 99 00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:16,800 Speaker 2: measure magnetic fields, and astronomers started using these instruments to 100 00:06:16,880 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 2: record data about the Earth's magnetic field. In eighteen thirty six, 101 00:06:21,560 --> 00:06:24,839 Speaker 2: Baron Alexander van Humboldt wrote a letter to the President 102 00:06:24,920 --> 00:06:27,800 Speaker 2: of the Royal Society that called for the creation of 103 00:06:27,839 --> 00:06:33,000 Speaker 2: a network of magnetic observatories all over the world. Humboldt 104 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:35,400 Speaker 2: was a foreign member of the Society, and he had 105 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:39,560 Speaker 2: already worked to get such observatories established in Russia, China, 106 00:06:39,720 --> 00:06:44,280 Speaker 2: and multiple nations across continental Europe. In response to Humboldt's 107 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:48,480 Speaker 2: recommendation and the advocacy of people like astronomer John Herschel 108 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:53,000 Speaker 2: and natural philosopher William Hewell, Britain set up observatories in 109 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:57,440 Speaker 2: its territory, including in Toronto, Canada, Hobart, Australia, and on 110 00:06:57,520 --> 00:07:00,320 Speaker 2: the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. A lot 111 00:07:00,400 --> 00:07:04,479 Speaker 2: of these observatories were also on their island territories, including 112 00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:08,560 Speaker 2: Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean, two different islands 113 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:11,520 Speaker 2: in New Zealand, and the Falkland Islands off the coast 114 00:07:11,560 --> 00:07:14,600 Speaker 2: of South America, as well as the Kerglan Islands in 115 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:17,800 Speaker 2: the Southern Indian Ocean below the Antarctic Circle. 116 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:22,400 Speaker 1: Britain's efforts in establishing these observatories came to be known 117 00:07:22,760 --> 00:07:26,960 Speaker 1: as the Magnetic Scheme, or sometimes the Magnetic Crusade, and 118 00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:32,440 Speaker 1: this crusade combined Victorian erascientific curiosity with the practical needs 119 00:07:32,480 --> 00:07:37,960 Speaker 1: of the British Navy. Magnetic compass readings were imprecise, compasses 120 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:42,119 Speaker 1: point to magnetic north, not true north, and magnetic north 121 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:46,440 Speaker 1: changes over time. There are also variations in the Earth's 122 00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:51,160 Speaker 1: magnetic field that affect these compass readings. The increased use 123 00:07:51,160 --> 00:07:55,440 Speaker 1: of iron in shipbuilding exacerbated these issues, and the British 124 00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:58,840 Speaker 1: Navy wanted to get more information about the Earth's magnetic 125 00:07:58,880 --> 00:08:02,840 Speaker 1: field to try to assault these problems. By eighteen fifty two, 126 00:08:03,000 --> 00:08:07,360 Speaker 1: thanks to ongoing observations of sunspot activity and readings from 127 00:08:07,440 --> 00:08:11,600 Speaker 1: all of these magnetometer stations, astronomers had also started to 128 00:08:11,640 --> 00:08:16,240 Speaker 1: make connections between sunspot activity and activity in the Earth's 129 00:08:16,280 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 1: magnetic field, with disruptions in the field seeming to follow 130 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:24,000 Speaker 1: sunspot activity. In addition to all of this, in the 131 00:08:24,040 --> 00:08:26,840 Speaker 1: mid nineteenth century, there were a lot of people who 132 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:31,160 Speaker 1: were interested in astronomy and had set up their own observatories. 133 00:08:31,600 --> 00:08:36,400 Speaker 1: One was Richard C. Carrington, whose private observatory was in Redhill, Surrey, 134 00:08:36,520 --> 00:08:40,040 Speaker 1: south of London. Carrington was elected to the Royal Society 135 00:08:40,040 --> 00:08:43,199 Speaker 1: in eighteen fifty and the Royal Astronomical Society in eighteen 136 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:47,839 Speaker 1: fifty one. Another was Richard Hodgson, whose observatory was at 137 00:08:47,840 --> 00:08:51,880 Speaker 1: his home, Claybury Hall, near Woodford, Essex, northeast of London. 138 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:55,960 Speaker 1: Hodgson had become a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society 139 00:08:55,960 --> 00:09:00,679 Speaker 1: in eighteen forty eight. And one more nineteenth century redevelopment 140 00:09:00,760 --> 00:09:03,560 Speaker 1: that was connected to all of this was the telegraph. 141 00:09:04,320 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: The first practical telegraphs were developed in the eighteen thirties. 142 00:09:07,880 --> 00:09:11,320 Speaker 1: That is also when Samuel Morse developed his system of 143 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:14,880 Speaker 1: dots and dashes that is known as Morse code. By 144 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 1: the eighteen forties, cities were being connected with telegraph wires. 145 00:09:19,280 --> 00:09:23,280 Speaker 1: In eighteen fifty nine, there wasn't yet a transcontinental telegraph 146 00:09:23,320 --> 00:09:27,079 Speaker 1: line in North America, and there wasn't a transatlantic cable. 147 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:30,080 Speaker 1: One had been laid in eighteen fifty eight that had 148 00:09:30,160 --> 00:09:34,000 Speaker 1: quickly stopped working, and it wasn't replaced until eighteen sixty six. 149 00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:38,120 Speaker 1: We did an episode on this in twenty sixteen. But 150 00:09:38,240 --> 00:09:41,280 Speaker 1: especially at North America and Europe, a lot of cities 151 00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:45,000 Speaker 1: and towns were connected to one another by telegraph. This 152 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:48,760 Speaker 1: solar storm had an effect on telegraph lines and machinery, 153 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:50,400 Speaker 1: and we're going to get to all of that in 154 00:09:50,480 --> 00:09:53,720 Speaker 1: a bit, but it also let people communicate about what 155 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:58,319 Speaker 1: they were seeing, experiencing, and measuring much faster than before 156 00:09:58,320 --> 00:10:02,720 Speaker 1: the telegraph was developed. It is very likely that the 157 00:10:02,760 --> 00:10:07,160 Speaker 1: Carrington event was not the largest geomagnetic storm ever to 158 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:11,400 Speaker 1: hit the Earth. For example, in seventeen seventy people in China, Korea, 159 00:10:11,440 --> 00:10:15,160 Speaker 1: and Japan reported a bright red aurora which lasted for 160 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:18,440 Speaker 1: more than a week and was concurrent with sun spots 161 00:10:18,480 --> 00:10:21,120 Speaker 1: that were about twice the size of the ones that 162 00:10:21,160 --> 00:10:25,160 Speaker 1: were observed around the Carrington event. Also in twenty twelve, 163 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:29,360 Speaker 1: Japanese physicist Fusumiyaki, who was a PhD student at the time, 164 00:10:29,920 --> 00:10:34,560 Speaker 1: discovered large spikes in carbon fourteen in tree rings, in 165 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:38,000 Speaker 1: this case rings dating back to the year seven seventy four. 166 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:43,080 Speaker 1: Other research has found examples of other huge carbon fourteen 167 00:10:43,160 --> 00:10:46,520 Speaker 1: spikes in tree rings from other years, and we really 168 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:49,679 Speaker 1: don't know much about what caused these spikes, although they 169 00:10:49,720 --> 00:10:53,160 Speaker 1: are believed to have been caused by solar energetic particle 170 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:56,720 Speaker 1: events that were probably much bigger than the Carrington event. 171 00:10:57,480 --> 00:10:59,760 Speaker 1: We also don't really know what people on Earth may 172 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:03,960 Speaker 1: have been experienced while these Miaki events were happening. There 173 00:11:03,960 --> 00:11:07,680 Speaker 1: are some very brief mentions of phenomenon that may have 174 00:11:07,880 --> 00:11:10,640 Speaker 1: been auroras in some of the same years, but they 175 00:11:10,679 --> 00:11:13,000 Speaker 1: aren't a whole lot to go on, and there wasn't 176 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:15,880 Speaker 1: a way to measure whatever it was that was happening. 177 00:11:16,679 --> 00:11:19,440 Speaker 1: And that's what I find to be so serendipitous about 178 00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:21,800 Speaker 1: the Carrington event, which is not something I would normally 179 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:24,720 Speaker 1: say about something that had so much to do with 180 00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:29,439 Speaker 1: Britain's colonial empire project. Over just a couple of decades, 181 00:11:29,559 --> 00:11:33,000 Speaker 1: magnetic observatories had been set up all over the world, 182 00:11:33,120 --> 00:11:37,040 Speaker 1: including equipment on ships at sea. People had started watching 183 00:11:37,120 --> 00:11:39,680 Speaker 1: the sun and recording what they saw every day for 184 00:11:39,840 --> 00:11:43,280 Speaker 1: long enough to notice recurring patterns. People had figured out 185 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:47,920 Speaker 1: how to use electricity to quickly send messages across long distances. 186 00:11:48,559 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 1: So when a geomagnetic storm started in August of eighteen 187 00:11:51,840 --> 00:11:56,040 Speaker 1: fifty nine, things were already in place and recently in 188 00:11:56,080 --> 00:11:59,160 Speaker 1: place for people to not only see its effects, but 189 00:11:59,240 --> 00:12:02,520 Speaker 1: also measure that those effects and record them and to 190 00:12:02,720 --> 00:12:05,640 Speaker 1: very quickly realize that it was happening in other places too. 191 00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:07,839 Speaker 1: And we're going to talk more about all of this 192 00:12:07,960 --> 00:12:09,880 Speaker 1: after we pause for a sponsor break. 193 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:23,120 Speaker 2: The Carrington event is sometimes described as two solar events 194 00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:26,360 Speaker 2: that happened very close together, one on August twenty eighth 195 00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:29,200 Speaker 2: and twenty ninth, eighteen fifty nine, and the other on 196 00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:33,600 Speaker 2: September first and second. It's also described as one event 197 00:12:33,679 --> 00:12:37,600 Speaker 2: that stretched over that whole window, but with reduced activity 198 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:42,040 Speaker 2: around August thirtieth and thirty first. People had also noticed 199 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 2: changes in the sun in the days before any effects 200 00:12:45,760 --> 00:12:48,960 Speaker 2: were noticed on Earth, with a particularly large group of 201 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:51,319 Speaker 2: sunspots noted on August twenty sixth. 202 00:12:52,160 --> 00:12:56,280 Speaker 1: During the first phase of this geomagnetic storm, skies were 203 00:12:56,320 --> 00:13:00,640 Speaker 1: clear over much of the northern hemisphere. Eighth was the 204 00:13:00,720 --> 00:13:04,760 Speaker 1: new moon, so the skies were also particularly dark. Basically, 205 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:07,840 Speaker 1: these were great conditions for seeing an aurora. 206 00:13:08,520 --> 00:13:10,280 Speaker 2: As we said at the top of the show, most 207 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 2: people who experienced the Carrington event or knew that they 208 00:13:14,040 --> 00:13:17,400 Speaker 2: were experiencing something during the event did so by seeing 209 00:13:17,559 --> 00:13:21,840 Speaker 2: an aurora, and the descriptions of what people saw sound incredible. 210 00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:25,480 Speaker 2: The Boston Transcript ran this description on September fifth. 211 00:13:25,559 --> 00:13:25,959 Speaker 3: Quote. 212 00:13:26,120 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 2: On Sunday evening in Vermont, the twenty eighth, at seven 213 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,840 Speaker 2: and a half o'clock, we were notified of a large 214 00:13:32,960 --> 00:13:35,480 Speaker 2: fire behind the mountain to the north, and we went 215 00:13:35,520 --> 00:13:39,000 Speaker 2: out to see it, and presently the red clouds began 216 00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:42,000 Speaker 2: to disappear, and spires of green shot up from the 217 00:13:42,040 --> 00:13:46,439 Speaker 2: same place. It was the most magnificent display ever witnessed 218 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:49,720 Speaker 2: in this section. The sky for about an hour more 219 00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:52,880 Speaker 2: kept changing from green to red till ten and a 220 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:56,520 Speaker 2: half o'clock, when all the brilliancy was gone except a 221 00:13:56,520 --> 00:13:57,960 Speaker 2: little green at the north. 222 00:13:58,720 --> 00:14:01,720 Speaker 1: Here's how it was described in the Washington Daily National 223 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:06,160 Speaker 1: Intelligencer of Washington, d c. On August thirty first quote. 224 00:14:06,520 --> 00:14:10,720 Speaker 1: The light appeared in streams, sometimes of a pure milky whiteness, 225 00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:14,640 Speaker 1: and sometimes of a light crimson. The white and rose 226 00:14:14,679 --> 00:14:17,280 Speaker 1: red waves of light as they swept to and from 227 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:21,560 Speaker 1: the corona were beautiful beyond description. And a friend nearby us, 228 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:24,040 Speaker 1: while looking to the zenith with the whole heavens and 229 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:27,400 Speaker 1: earth lighted up at a greater brilliancy than is afforded 230 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:30,160 Speaker 1: by the full moon, said that it was like resting 231 00:14:30,200 --> 00:14:34,400 Speaker 1: beneath the wings of the Almighty. The crown above indeed 232 00:14:34,600 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 1: seemed like a throne of silver, purple and crimson, hung 233 00:14:38,640 --> 00:14:42,040 Speaker 1: and spread out with curtains or wings of dazzling beauty. 234 00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:46,280 Speaker 1: The tremulous motion of moving light, which the inhabitants of 235 00:14:46,320 --> 00:14:49,920 Speaker 1: the Shetland Islands called the merry Dancers, was less apparent 236 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:53,720 Speaker 1: than usual, but in place of it came those full, bright, 237 00:14:54,280 --> 00:14:57,560 Speaker 1: changing but more steady streams of light, which gave an 238 00:14:57,600 --> 00:14:59,920 Speaker 1: intense brilliancy to the whole heaven. 239 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:04,280 Speaker 2: Because of time zones and the International date line, it 240 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:08,320 Speaker 2: was August twenty ninth when the unusual aurora started in Australia. 241 00:15:09,000 --> 00:15:13,080 Speaker 2: The Hobart Town Mercury reported quote, it was beyond all conception, 242 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:17,400 Speaker 2: the most magnificent aurora ever seen in the colony. Some 243 00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:20,520 Speaker 2: of the descriptions of the aurora as seen in South 244 00:15:20,560 --> 00:15:25,160 Speaker 2: Australia describe a meteor streaking across the sky just before 245 00:15:25,160 --> 00:15:29,120 Speaker 2: the aurora started. I'm not totally sure whether this was 246 00:15:29,280 --> 00:15:32,960 Speaker 2: actually a meteor that was visible from South Australia, or 247 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:36,560 Speaker 2: if that's more what people thought they were seeing before 248 00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:38,280 Speaker 2: the rest of the color really started. 249 00:15:38,800 --> 00:15:42,200 Speaker 1: People around the world were also talking about how bright 250 00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:46,840 Speaker 1: it was. Professor Daniel Kirkwood of Bloomington, Indiana said, quote, 251 00:15:46,920 --> 00:15:50,640 Speaker 1: it was the lightest moonless night our citizens have ever known. 252 00:15:51,760 --> 00:15:55,120 Speaker 1: Other descriptions call the sky brighter than during the full moon, 253 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:58,600 Speaker 1: or bright enough to read by, As the Times of 254 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:02,160 Speaker 1: London reported, quote, during the first display, the whole of 255 00:16:02,200 --> 00:16:05,280 Speaker 1: the northern hemisphere was as light as though the sun 256 00:16:05,360 --> 00:16:08,960 Speaker 1: had set an hour before, and luminous waves rolled up 257 00:16:08,960 --> 00:16:12,640 Speaker 1: in quick succession as far as the zenith, some a 258 00:16:12,720 --> 00:16:16,720 Speaker 1: brilliancy sufficient to cast a perceptible shadow on the ground. 259 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:22,040 Speaker 1: Accounts of the aurora's return on September one are similarly dramatic. 260 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:26,360 Speaker 1: The Providence, Rhode Island Daily Post published this description on 261 00:16:26,440 --> 00:16:31,680 Speaker 1: September third, quote, the auroral light sometimes is composed of threads, 262 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:35,720 Speaker 1: like the silken warp of a web. These sometimes become 263 00:16:35,800 --> 00:16:39,880 Speaker 1: broken and fall to the earth. The September fifth edition 264 00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 1: of the San Francisco Harold red quote, the appearance now 265 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:48,000 Speaker 1: is positively awful. The red glare is over houses, streets, 266 00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:51,560 Speaker 1: and fields, and the most dreadful of conflagrations could not 267 00:16:51,800 --> 00:16:56,200 Speaker 1: cast a deeper hue abroad, so that makes it sound terrifying. 268 00:16:56,240 --> 00:16:59,520 Speaker 1: But the words awful and dreadful were both used pretty 269 00:16:59,520 --> 00:17:04,359 Speaker 1: commonly this time to mean inspiring awe. Elsewhere. On the 270 00:17:04,359 --> 00:17:07,080 Speaker 1: same day, the Herald also said, quote, the whole sky 271 00:17:07,240 --> 00:17:10,480 Speaker 1: appeared to undulate something like a field of grain in 272 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:13,600 Speaker 1: a high wind. The waters of the bay reflected the 273 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:17,760 Speaker 1: brilliant hues of the aurora. Nothing could exceed the grandeur 274 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:21,480 Speaker 1: and beauty of the site. The effect was almost bewildering, 275 00:17:21,760 --> 00:17:24,800 Speaker 1: and was witnessed with mingled feelings of awe and delight 276 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:29,679 Speaker 1: by thousands on September first and second. The aurora was 277 00:17:29,760 --> 00:17:34,840 Speaker 1: also apparently bright enough to confuse birds and people sleeping outdoors. 278 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:38,840 Speaker 1: The New Orleans Daily piciun carried an account of somebody 279 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:42,359 Speaker 1: who shot three larks at one am, and the larks 280 00:17:42,400 --> 00:17:44,919 Speaker 1: were apparently out flying because they thought it was morning, 281 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:49,960 Speaker 1: and the Rocky Mountain News printed this account on September seventeenth, quote, 282 00:17:50,200 --> 00:17:53,120 Speaker 1: we were high up on the Rocky Mountains, sleeping in 283 00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:53,880 Speaker 1: the open air. 284 00:17:54,359 --> 00:17:55,560 Speaker 3: A little after midnight. 285 00:17:55,640 --> 00:17:59,320 Speaker 2: We were awakened by the auroral light, so bright that 286 00:17:59,359 --> 00:18:03,080 Speaker 2: one could easy read common print. Some of the party 287 00:18:03,160 --> 00:18:07,280 Speaker 2: insisted that it was daylight and began the preparation of breakfast. 288 00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:12,119 Speaker 2: The light continued until morning, varying in intensity in different 289 00:18:12,160 --> 00:18:16,000 Speaker 2: parts of the heavens, and slowly changing position. We can 290 00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:19,640 Speaker 2: best describe it as the sky being overcast with very 291 00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:24,000 Speaker 2: light cirrus clouds wafted before a gentle breeze and lighted 292 00:18:24,080 --> 00:18:27,600 Speaker 2: up by an immense conflagration. It had rained for fifty 293 00:18:27,640 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 2: hours before, only ceasing about twelve hours before the auroral light. 294 00:18:32,960 --> 00:18:34,159 Speaker 3: In terms of where. 295 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:37,600 Speaker 1: People saw this aurora on August twenty eighth and twenty ninth, 296 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:41,320 Speaker 1: in the northern hemisphere, it was reported all across North 297 00:18:41,359 --> 00:18:45,000 Speaker 1: America and Central America, from ships and islands in the 298 00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:48,760 Speaker 1: Atlantic Ocean, and through western Europe as far south as 299 00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:54,000 Speaker 1: southern Spain. The southernmost reported sightings were in Hawaii, Cuba, 300 00:18:54,040 --> 00:18:56,680 Speaker 1: and Panama, and on a ship at sea that was 301 00:18:56,720 --> 00:19:00,000 Speaker 1: at twenty five degrees latitude north. That is the same 302 00:19:00,119 --> 00:19:04,600 Speaker 1: latitude is Key Largo, Florida. Then in the southern hemisphere 303 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:09,760 Speaker 1: it was reported across southeastern Australia and Tasmania. The geomagnetic 304 00:19:09,840 --> 00:19:13,200 Speaker 1: storm was stronger on September first and second, with more 305 00:19:13,280 --> 00:19:15,280 Speaker 1: reports in the same regions where it had been on 306 00:19:15,320 --> 00:19:19,760 Speaker 1: the twenty ninth and thirtieth, along with new reports in Japan, China, 307 00:19:19,880 --> 00:19:22,200 Speaker 1: Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Chile. 308 00:19:23,320 --> 00:19:28,360 Speaker 2: These two waves of geomagnetic activity wreaked havoc on all 309 00:19:28,359 --> 00:19:32,840 Speaker 2: those newly established telegraph systems. There were about two hundred 310 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:36,600 Speaker 2: thousand kilometers or one hundred and twenty five thousand miles 311 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:39,520 Speaker 2: of telegraph lines in the world at this point, and 312 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:42,439 Speaker 2: the storm had an impact on the vast majority of 313 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:46,600 Speaker 2: those lines, in some cases rendering them unusable for about 314 00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:50,960 Speaker 2: eight hours. Accounts of what happened at the telegraph stations 315 00:19:51,000 --> 00:19:55,600 Speaker 2: were as dramatic as the accounts of the Aurora Telegraph manager. E. W. 316 00:19:55,720 --> 00:20:00,560 Speaker 2: Cuggan of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania said that quote, streams of fire 317 00:20:01,240 --> 00:20:05,159 Speaker 2: came from the station's circuits. On August twenty eighth, telegraph 318 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:07,960 Speaker 2: wires in France were reported as sparking. 319 00:20:09,119 --> 00:20:12,879 Speaker 1: Frederick W. Royce of Washington, d C. Described having great 320 00:20:12,920 --> 00:20:16,119 Speaker 1: difficulty because of the changing currents that seemed to be 321 00:20:16,200 --> 00:20:19,159 Speaker 1: running along the lines. When it seemed like there was 322 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:21,960 Speaker 1: a storm on the line to Richmond, he switched to 323 00:20:22,000 --> 00:20:25,920 Speaker 1: another wire, but then that wire developed the same problem. 324 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:29,200 Speaker 1: It was also erratic. Things would be fine for five 325 00:20:29,280 --> 00:20:31,639 Speaker 1: or ten minutes, but then the charge would become so 326 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:35,159 Speaker 1: weak that Royce couldn't feel it, or so strong that 327 00:20:35,200 --> 00:20:39,399 Speaker 1: he couldn't lift the device's electromagnet. And then, as quoted 328 00:20:39,400 --> 00:20:42,399 Speaker 1: in the New York Times quote. During the display, I 329 00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:45,480 Speaker 1: was calling Richmond and had one hand on the iron plate, 330 00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:49,600 Speaker 1: happening to lean towards the sounder, which is against the wall. 331 00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:53,119 Speaker 1: My forehead grazed a ground wire which runs down the 332 00:20:53,119 --> 00:20:57,960 Speaker 1: wall near the sounder. Immediately I received a very severe 333 00:20:58,000 --> 00:21:01,720 Speaker 1: electric shock, which stunned me for an instant. An old 334 00:21:01,760 --> 00:21:04,480 Speaker 1: man who was sitting facing me but a few feet distant, 335 00:21:04,880 --> 00:21:08,000 Speaker 1: said that he saw a spark of fire jump from 336 00:21:08,040 --> 00:21:12,359 Speaker 1: my forehead to the sounder. The Morse Line experienced the 337 00:21:12,440 --> 00:21:17,280 Speaker 1: same difficulty in working. In Sydney, Australia, the telegraphs were 338 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:22,200 Speaker 1: quote seized with an unaccountable fit of restiveness. They did 339 00:21:22,200 --> 00:21:26,879 Speaker 1: not altogether refuse to work, but acted irregularly, the adjustment 340 00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:30,320 Speaker 1: of the instruments altering so frequently that it was almost 341 00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:35,880 Speaker 1: impossible to get any continuous message through. Everywhere the instruments 342 00:21:35,880 --> 00:21:40,280 Speaker 1: were jammed. This started during the daytime, and telegraph operators 343 00:21:40,320 --> 00:21:42,280 Speaker 1: did not know what in the world could be causing 344 00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:45,800 Speaker 1: all of these problems until night fell and the aurora 345 00:21:45,880 --> 00:21:50,440 Speaker 1: was visible in the sky. Multiple telegraph workers also reported 346 00:21:50,480 --> 00:21:54,320 Speaker 1: being able to send messages without the batteries attached to 347 00:21:54,359 --> 00:21:59,320 Speaker 1: the lines. Samuel McGowan, the General Superintendent of Electric Telegraphs, 348 00:21:59,359 --> 00:22:03,320 Speaker 1: submitted a report to Parliament that described this happening in Australia. 349 00:22:03,520 --> 00:22:04,040 Speaker 3: Quote. 350 00:22:04,160 --> 00:22:07,000 Speaker 1: The effect upon the wires was in many cases singular. 351 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:12,040 Speaker 1: At times, prevailing atmospheric currents would entirely dissipate the artificial 352 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:16,200 Speaker 1: current and assume complete possession of the lines, baffling all 353 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:21,119 Speaker 1: attempts at rendering the communication available again. The atmospheric currents 354 00:22:21,119 --> 00:22:25,760 Speaker 1: would suddenly entirely disappear. The lines would work perfectly when 355 00:22:25,800 --> 00:22:28,439 Speaker 1: in a moment the electromagnets would be quite deprived of 356 00:22:28,480 --> 00:22:32,080 Speaker 1: their ordinary power, The conducting medium would be polarized in 357 00:22:32,200 --> 00:22:35,960 Speaker 1: several opposite directions within as many seconds, and the whole 358 00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:39,800 Speaker 1: natural condition of the instruments would be instantly reversed and 359 00:22:40,119 --> 00:22:44,359 Speaker 1: as suddenly set right. On one occasion, during this interesting 360 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:48,400 Speaker 1: disturbance of the natural elements, I communicated with and received 361 00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:52,760 Speaker 1: an acknowledgment from a station distant thirty two miles through 362 00:22:52,880 --> 00:22:57,320 Speaker 1: atmospheric currents alone, there being at the time no battery 363 00:22:57,359 --> 00:23:00,800 Speaker 1: on the line. I may add that I witness similar 364 00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: effects about twelve years back on a line of electric 365 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:07,720 Speaker 1: telegraph in Upper Canada, during the presence of a magnificent 366 00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:09,720 Speaker 1: Aurora borealis in midwinter. 367 00:23:10,920 --> 00:23:14,320 Speaker 2: The same thing happened in Washington, d C. And in Boston. 368 00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:18,359 Speaker 2: An account from Boston was published in the American Journal 369 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:21,639 Speaker 2: of Science after being reported in The Boston Traveler, and 370 00:23:21,720 --> 00:23:26,440 Speaker 2: it relayed the experience of operators in Boston and in Portland, Maine. 371 00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:30,800 Speaker 2: The Boston operator had removed the batteries from the line 372 00:23:30,960 --> 00:23:34,280 Speaker 2: as was working without them. He sent a message to 373 00:23:34,320 --> 00:23:37,359 Speaker 2: Portland and said they should remove that battery from the 374 00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,760 Speaker 2: line as well. The operator in Portland did, and then 375 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:44,719 Speaker 2: they relayed messages without any batteries more easily than they 376 00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:49,240 Speaker 2: had done with the batteries on The Boston operator described 377 00:23:49,280 --> 00:23:52,840 Speaker 2: them as quote working with the auroral current, and said 378 00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:57,840 Speaker 2: the aurora seemed to alternately neutralize and augment their batteries, 379 00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:01,640 Speaker 2: making the current sometimes two strong and sometimes too weak. 380 00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:05,359 Speaker 2: So if you're wondering, like, hey, what does all of 381 00:24:05,359 --> 00:24:07,080 Speaker 2: this have to do with that Carrington guy that you 382 00:24:07,119 --> 00:24:09,800 Speaker 2: talked about earlier, listen, be patient. We're going to get 383 00:24:09,840 --> 00:24:10,040 Speaker 2: to it. 384 00:24:10,280 --> 00:24:11,880 Speaker 1: We will get to it right after we hear from 385 00:24:11,880 --> 00:24:13,480 Speaker 1: these sponsors that keep the show going. 386 00:24:19,200 --> 00:24:22,920 Speaker 2: The reason this geomagnetic event is called the Carrington event 387 00:24:23,119 --> 00:24:26,840 Speaker 2: is because on September first, eighteen fifty nine, English astronomer 388 00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:31,680 Speaker 2: Richard C. Carrington was working in his private observatory in Redhill, Surrey, 389 00:24:32,119 --> 00:24:35,800 Speaker 2: and he witnessed something unusual. He published an account of 390 00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:38,680 Speaker 2: what he saw in the Monthly Notices of the Royal 391 00:24:38,760 --> 00:24:42,639 Speaker 2: Astronomical Society in November of eighteen fifty nine, and it 392 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:47,360 Speaker 2: read quote, while engaged in the forenoon of Thursday, September first, 393 00:24:47,800 --> 00:24:51,520 Speaker 2: in taking my customary observation of the forums and positions 394 00:24:51,560 --> 00:24:54,879 Speaker 2: of the solar spots, an appearance was witnessed which I 395 00:24:54,920 --> 00:24:58,639 Speaker 2: believe to be exceedingly rare. The image of the Sun's 396 00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:02,320 Speaker 2: disc was, as usual with me, projected onto a plate 397 00:25:02,400 --> 00:25:06,480 Speaker 2: of glass coated with distemper of a pale straw color, 398 00:25:07,040 --> 00:25:09,879 Speaker 2: and at a distance and under a power, which presented 399 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:14,240 Speaker 2: a picture of about eleven inches diameter. I had secured 400 00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:18,080 Speaker 2: diagrams of all the groups and detached spots, and was 401 00:25:18,200 --> 00:25:21,600 Speaker 2: engaged at the time in counting from a chronometer and 402 00:25:21,720 --> 00:25:25,280 Speaker 2: recording the contacts of the spots with the cross wires 403 00:25:25,359 --> 00:25:29,000 Speaker 2: used in the observation. When within the area of the 404 00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:32,760 Speaker 2: Great North Group, the size of which had previously excited 405 00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:37,960 Speaker 2: general remark, two patches of intensely bright and white light 406 00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:43,119 Speaker 2: broke out. This bright white light is probably the earliest 407 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:47,680 Speaker 2: known direct observation of a solar flare happening in conjunction 408 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:52,960 Speaker 2: with a coronal mass ejection. In his publication, Carrington included 409 00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:55,919 Speaker 2: an illustration of the sun spots, and he marked the 410 00:25:55,960 --> 00:25:58,880 Speaker 2: points where he saw the bright light as A and B. 411 00:26:00,119 --> 00:26:02,639 Speaker 2: At first he thought a hole had formed in the 412 00:26:02,680 --> 00:26:05,119 Speaker 2: screen that was part of his instrument, because it was 413 00:26:05,280 --> 00:26:09,480 Speaker 2: as bright as direct, unfiltered light would have been, So 414 00:26:09,560 --> 00:26:12,359 Speaker 2: he adjusted his instruments. He made note of what time 415 00:26:12,400 --> 00:26:14,680 Speaker 2: it was, and he called for somebody else to come 416 00:26:14,720 --> 00:26:16,040 Speaker 2: and look with him. 417 00:26:16,080 --> 00:26:18,240 Speaker 3: But in the minute or so that it took him to. 418 00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:21,680 Speaker 2: Do all that, the light was quote already much changed 419 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:25,800 Speaker 2: and enfeebled. In his illustration, he also marked where he 420 00:26:25,840 --> 00:26:29,840 Speaker 2: saw the last traces of this phenomenon as points C 421 00:26:30,240 --> 00:26:30,720 Speaker 2: and D. 422 00:26:31,920 --> 00:26:35,280 Speaker 1: Carrington exhibited a diagram of the sun and what he 423 00:26:35,320 --> 00:26:37,439 Speaker 1: had seen on it at the November meeting of the 424 00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:41,760 Speaker 1: Royal Astronomical Society, and his account in the Society's Monthly 425 00:26:41,840 --> 00:26:46,199 Speaker 1: Notices is followed by a parenthetical note about how roughly 426 00:26:46,320 --> 00:26:51,080 Speaker 1: seventeen hours after Carrington made this observation. Quote, there commenced 427 00:26:51,080 --> 00:26:54,520 Speaker 1: a great magnetic storm, the effects of which included the 428 00:26:54,560 --> 00:26:58,720 Speaker 1: auroras and disruptions to the telegraph system. The person who 429 00:26:58,760 --> 00:27:02,480 Speaker 1: wrote this parenthetical note charmingly relates what Carrington had to 430 00:27:02,480 --> 00:27:05,639 Speaker 1: say about the proximity of the light he saw and 431 00:27:05,720 --> 00:27:07,320 Speaker 1: this geomagnetic storm. 432 00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:08,000 Speaker 3: Quote. 433 00:27:08,240 --> 00:27:11,800 Speaker 1: While the contemporary occurrence may deserve noting, he would not 434 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:15,840 Speaker 1: have it supposed that he even leans toward hastily connecting them. 435 00:27:16,400 --> 00:27:18,560 Speaker 1: One swallow does not make a summer. 436 00:27:19,920 --> 00:27:23,600 Speaker 2: I saw a lot of puns about swallows as more 437 00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:28,359 Speaker 2: data was gathered about these phenomena. A better name for 438 00:27:28,480 --> 00:27:32,439 Speaker 2: this event might be the Carrington Hodgson event, because Richard 439 00:27:32,480 --> 00:27:35,280 Speaker 2: Hodgson made the same observation at the same time in 440 00:27:35,359 --> 00:27:38,920 Speaker 2: his own observatory in Essex, and also published his account 441 00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 2: of it in the November eighteen fifty nine Monthly Notices 442 00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:46,240 Speaker 2: if the Royal Astronomical Society. His account was a little 443 00:27:46,240 --> 00:27:49,159 Speaker 2: bit shorter. Hodgson wrote quote, while observing a group of 444 00:27:49,200 --> 00:27:53,000 Speaker 2: sunspots on the first September, I was suddenly surprised at 445 00:27:53,000 --> 00:27:55,760 Speaker 2: the appearance of a very bright star of light, much 446 00:27:55,840 --> 00:27:59,800 Speaker 2: brighter than the Sun's surface. Most dazzling to the protected eye, 447 00:28:00,320 --> 00:28:03,520 Speaker 2: illuminating the upper edges of the adjacent. 448 00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:04,240 Speaker 3: Spots and streaks. 449 00:28:04,640 --> 00:28:08,440 Speaker 2: Not unlike in effect the edging of the clouds at sunset, 450 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:12,240 Speaker 2: the rays extended in all directions, and the center might 451 00:28:12,280 --> 00:28:15,920 Speaker 2: be compared to the dazzling brilliancy of the bright star 452 00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:16,840 Speaker 2: Alpha Lira. 453 00:28:17,359 --> 00:28:18,159 Speaker 3: When seen through a. 454 00:28:18,200 --> 00:28:22,119 Speaker 2: Large telescope with low power. It lasted for some five 455 00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:26,720 Speaker 2: minutes and disappeared instantaneously at about eleven twenty five am. 456 00:28:27,200 --> 00:28:29,440 Speaker 2: Hodgson also made a sketch of what he had seen, 457 00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:32,720 Speaker 2: although that sketch does not seem to have survived until today. 458 00:28:33,800 --> 00:28:37,760 Speaker 1: Carrington heard about Hodgson's observations, and he intentionally did not 459 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:40,920 Speaker 1: discuss it with him. In his words, quote, I have 460 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:45,640 Speaker 1: carefully avoided exchanging any information with that gentleman, that any 461 00:28:45,800 --> 00:28:49,000 Speaker 1: value which the accounts may possess may be increased by 462 00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:53,680 Speaker 1: their entire independence. Both men also knew that the magnetic 463 00:28:53,720 --> 00:28:57,680 Speaker 1: instruments at q Observatory had showed something happening at the 464 00:28:57,720 --> 00:29:02,400 Speaker 1: time that they observed the bright light. Carrington included that 465 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:06,360 Speaker 1: information in his exhibition at the Society meeting, and Hodgson 466 00:29:06,480 --> 00:29:09,600 Speaker 1: ended his account with quote the magnetic instruments that Q 467 00:29:09,840 --> 00:29:12,960 Speaker 1: were simultaneously disturbed to a great extent. 468 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:18,520 Speaker 2: So the magnetometer traces from the Q Observatory on September first, 469 00:29:18,560 --> 00:29:22,720 Speaker 2: eighteen fifty nine show a sudden, sharp spike in both 470 00:29:22,840 --> 00:29:27,000 Speaker 2: horizontal force and declination. And there's a note written underneath 471 00:29:27,040 --> 00:29:31,680 Speaker 2: that reads, quote, the above movement was nearly coincidental in 472 00:29:31,840 --> 00:29:35,520 Speaker 2: time with Carrington's observation of a bright eruption on the 473 00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:39,280 Speaker 2: sun disc over a sunspot. Today this kind of reading 474 00:29:39,520 --> 00:29:42,440 Speaker 2: is called a solar flare effect or SFE, but it 475 00:29:42,480 --> 00:29:45,680 Speaker 2: has also been described as a magnetic crochet I don't 476 00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:48,800 Speaker 2: know why or who named it that, and I spent 477 00:29:48,840 --> 00:29:50,880 Speaker 2: a lot of time trying to figure it out. On 478 00:29:51,000 --> 00:29:55,160 Speaker 2: this particular one, one of the spikes does kind of 479 00:29:55,200 --> 00:29:58,120 Speaker 2: look like a crochet hook, but there are lots of 480 00:29:58,200 --> 00:30:02,120 Speaker 2: other ones that don't look that way that are showing 481 00:30:02,200 --> 00:30:03,200 Speaker 2: similar phenomena. 482 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:08,000 Speaker 1: Beyond the readings at Q Observatory, magnetic observatories all over 483 00:30:08,040 --> 00:30:12,080 Speaker 1: the world recorded intense disturbances over the course of this event. 484 00:30:12,800 --> 00:30:16,560 Speaker 1: The readings were off the scale in Brussels, Rome, Toronto, 485 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:21,240 Speaker 1: and multiple cities in Russia. Words like violent and very 486 00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:25,760 Speaker 1: disturbed were used. To describe the readings in Melbourne, Sydney, Paris, 487 00:30:25,840 --> 00:30:30,400 Speaker 1: and Oslo. There were also disturbances in a magnetometer readout 488 00:30:30,440 --> 00:30:35,720 Speaker 1: from India. During this event, astronomers and other researchers got 489 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:40,360 Speaker 1: so much information about the aurora and the descriptions to 490 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:43,520 Speaker 1: the telegraph system and the readings from all of those 491 00:30:43,560 --> 00:30:48,800 Speaker 1: geomagnetic observatories. This was in part thanks to Elias Loomis, 492 00:30:48,880 --> 00:30:52,720 Speaker 1: professor of natural philosophy and astronomy at Yale, who did 493 00:30:52,720 --> 00:30:56,320 Speaker 1: a lot of work collecting reports from all over the world. 494 00:30:57,000 --> 00:30:59,800 Speaker 1: He edited and published the results of this work as 495 00:30:59,800 --> 00:31:03,680 Speaker 1: a series of nine articles in the American Journal of Science. 496 00:31:04,720 --> 00:31:09,960 Speaker 1: All these observations and all this data helped astronomers, physicists, 497 00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:13,920 Speaker 1: and other researchers conclude something that had already been suspected 498 00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:16,560 Speaker 1: for a while. In the words of an article in 499 00:31:16,640 --> 00:31:20,640 Speaker 1: Scientific American in October of eighteen fifty nine, quote, a 500 00:31:20,680 --> 00:31:24,200 Speaker 1: connection between the northern lights and forces of electricity and 501 00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:29,080 Speaker 1: magnetism is now fully established. This also led to a 502 00:31:29,120 --> 00:31:32,520 Speaker 1: growing understanding that the Sun and the Aurora were connected. 503 00:31:33,200 --> 00:31:36,200 Speaker 1: Before this point, the aurora was speculated to be connected 504 00:31:36,240 --> 00:31:40,440 Speaker 1: to everything from volcanic ash in the atmosphere to reflections 505 00:31:40,440 --> 00:31:44,880 Speaker 1: of light from polar ice to nebulous material falling from space. 506 00:31:45,600 --> 00:31:48,360 Speaker 1: It also became a precursor to the field of space 507 00:31:48,440 --> 00:31:52,880 Speaker 1: weather prediction, and this data from the Carrington event has 508 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:56,720 Speaker 1: continued to be used in more recent years to further 509 00:31:56,840 --> 00:32:00,520 Speaker 1: the understanding of solar phenomena and specifically what happened in 510 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:04,400 Speaker 1: eighteen fifty nine. In two thousand and six, scientists from 511 00:32:04,440 --> 00:32:08,600 Speaker 1: the NASA Goddard Space Center published a paper called Duration 512 00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:12,160 Speaker 1: and Extent of the Great Auroral Storm of eighteen fifty nine. 513 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:16,320 Speaker 1: This paper described the event as quote arguably the greatest 514 00:32:16,360 --> 00:32:19,200 Speaker 1: and most famous space weather event in the last two 515 00:32:19,240 --> 00:32:23,520 Speaker 1: hundred years. For the first time, observation showed that the 516 00:32:23,600 --> 00:32:27,720 Speaker 1: Sun and Aurora were connected and that auroras generated strong 517 00:32:27,840 --> 00:32:29,280 Speaker 1: ionospirit currents. 518 00:32:30,080 --> 00:32:34,320 Speaker 2: These researchers poured over reports from eighteen fifty nine. They 519 00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:38,160 Speaker 2: cross referenced observations of the Aurora with incidents at the 520 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:41,520 Speaker 2: telegraph stations and the magnetometer readings try to get a 521 00:32:41,560 --> 00:32:45,800 Speaker 2: really precise look at exactly what had happened. This paper 522 00:32:45,840 --> 00:32:49,840 Speaker 2: also makes it clear just how much was written about 523 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:53,880 Speaker 2: the event at the time. Quote, there are literally several 524 00:32:54,160 --> 00:32:57,560 Speaker 2: hundred reports that the authors have uncovered that could not 525 00:32:57,720 --> 00:33:01,240 Speaker 2: be used since they typically do not a start and 526 00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:03,480 Speaker 2: stop time of the observed aura. 527 00:33:04,520 --> 00:33:08,600 Speaker 1: Of course, more precise instruments for measuring and recording these 528 00:33:08,680 --> 00:33:12,720 Speaker 1: kinds of phenomena have been developed since eighteen fifty nine. 529 00:33:12,760 --> 00:33:15,800 Speaker 1: The observation of solar flares became a lot easier with 530 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:19,280 Speaker 1: the development of the spectro helioscope by George ellery Hale 531 00:33:19,320 --> 00:33:23,120 Speaker 1: in the nineteen twenties. By the nineteen forties, astronomers had 532 00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:27,840 Speaker 1: gathered enough data and observations to definitively connect large solar 533 00:33:27,840 --> 00:33:32,480 Speaker 1: flares with geomagnetic storms. Apart from just being interesting, this 534 00:33:32,680 --> 00:33:35,400 Speaker 1: kind of research and projects to study and model the 535 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:39,000 Speaker 1: eighteen fifty nine event may help predict what would happen 536 00:33:39,080 --> 00:33:43,200 Speaker 1: if another similar event struck the Earth Today. The vast 537 00:33:43,280 --> 00:33:47,120 Speaker 1: majority of large geomagnetic storms happened before there was anything 538 00:33:47,160 --> 00:33:49,880 Speaker 1: happening on Earth that could be adversely affected by them, 539 00:33:50,240 --> 00:33:54,240 Speaker 1: beyond maybe people's fear or psychological responses to the lights 540 00:33:54,280 --> 00:33:58,000 Speaker 1: in the sky. Yeah, there were a few reports from 541 00:33:58,080 --> 00:34:01,120 Speaker 1: eighteen fifty nine of people seeming kind of drunk or 542 00:34:01,280 --> 00:34:06,080 Speaker 1: behaving erratically, but overwhelmingly the reports that had more of 543 00:34:06,120 --> 00:34:08,840 Speaker 1: a sense of awe and wonder rather than fear, like 544 00:34:08,880 --> 00:34:11,880 Speaker 1: they all sounded really poetic. The only things that seemed 545 00:34:11,920 --> 00:34:17,000 Speaker 1: really alarming to people were like the telegraphs suddenly having 546 00:34:17,040 --> 00:34:19,640 Speaker 1: sparks and getting fire. I am curious because you know, 547 00:34:19,719 --> 00:34:23,120 Speaker 1: at this time too, the idea of awe had a 548 00:34:23,239 --> 00:34:27,440 Speaker 1: layer of fear relation to it. Yeah, so there may 549 00:34:27,520 --> 00:34:29,320 Speaker 1: have been some fear in the mix. 550 00:34:30,040 --> 00:34:34,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, but at least in terms of the accounts accessible 551 00:34:34,520 --> 00:34:37,520 Speaker 2: to me, which our accounts written in English. It seems 552 00:34:37,560 --> 00:34:41,000 Speaker 2: like in most places people realized what they were seeing. 553 00:34:41,520 --> 00:34:43,800 Speaker 2: They had either heard a description of an aurora before 554 00:34:43,960 --> 00:34:46,080 Speaker 2: or somebody was there who was like, oh, this is 555 00:34:46,080 --> 00:34:50,920 Speaker 2: the aurora. And it wasn't a matter of people thinking, oh, no, 556 00:34:51,160 --> 00:34:55,200 Speaker 2: the world is ending. It was more of a it's 557 00:34:55,320 --> 00:34:57,480 Speaker 2: the aurora. How cool and profound. 558 00:34:57,840 --> 00:34:58,040 Speaker 3: Right. 559 00:35:00,040 --> 00:35:01,680 Speaker 2: Anyway, I said at the top of the show that 560 00:35:01,719 --> 00:35:04,439 Speaker 2: I find this to be a serendipitous story. There were 561 00:35:04,480 --> 00:35:07,360 Speaker 2: two different people looking at the right place at the 562 00:35:07,440 --> 00:35:10,040 Speaker 2: right time to see this solar flare. There was a 563 00:35:10,040 --> 00:35:13,720 Speaker 2: whole newly built array of observatories to record the data 564 00:35:13,760 --> 00:35:16,640 Speaker 2: about it and the geomagnetic storm that followed it. But 565 00:35:16,760 --> 00:35:20,319 Speaker 2: the converse of that is that with the development of 566 00:35:20,360 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 2: the telegraph, there was something on Earth that this geomagnetic 567 00:35:24,680 --> 00:35:28,799 Speaker 2: storm could actually break, at least temporarily. And today there 568 00:35:28,840 --> 00:35:32,400 Speaker 2: are way more things that could be damaged or knocked 569 00:35:32,440 --> 00:35:35,239 Speaker 2: offline by a massive solar event like this, and a 570 00:35:35,280 --> 00:35:39,480 Speaker 2: lot of them are way more integrated into our daily lives. 571 00:35:39,880 --> 00:35:41,480 Speaker 2: Like I read a couple of things that tried to 572 00:35:41,560 --> 00:35:46,240 Speaker 2: quantify the financial loss of the telegraph systems being down 573 00:35:46,320 --> 00:35:48,520 Speaker 2: for about eight hours and in some cases having to 574 00:35:48,560 --> 00:35:51,720 Speaker 2: be repaired. But today we have things like the power 575 00:35:51,800 --> 00:35:56,640 Speaker 2: grid and GPS and satellites and the Internet, all kinds 576 00:35:56,680 --> 00:36:00,839 Speaker 2: of things that are all around us and could be 577 00:36:01,160 --> 00:36:03,320 Speaker 2: knocked offline or destroyed in a similar event. 578 00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:06,279 Speaker 1: Goodbye connectivity right. 579 00:36:08,040 --> 00:36:12,160 Speaker 2: Over the last twenty years, various governments and militaries and 580 00:36:12,200 --> 00:36:15,439 Speaker 2: even banks and insurance companies have sort of looked back 581 00:36:15,480 --> 00:36:18,400 Speaker 2: at the Carrington event to see what kinds of risks 582 00:36:18,440 --> 00:36:21,839 Speaker 2: we might be facing today, and a couple. 583 00:36:21,520 --> 00:36:25,160 Speaker 1: Of recent events have highlighted these risks. In March of 584 00:36:25,239 --> 00:36:29,279 Speaker 1: nineteen eighty nine, a coronal mass ejection disabled much of 585 00:36:29,320 --> 00:36:33,720 Speaker 1: the power distribution network in Quebec, Canada. About six million 586 00:36:33,800 --> 00:36:37,680 Speaker 1: people were without power for nine hours and restoring power 587 00:36:38,080 --> 00:36:43,240 Speaker 1: involved rerouting electricity from other stations while damaged equipment was repaired. 588 00:36:44,239 --> 00:36:47,320 Speaker 1: During that event, the aurora was seen as far south 589 00:36:47,360 --> 00:36:51,120 Speaker 1: as Florida, and in July of twenty twelve, a massive 590 00:36:51,239 --> 00:36:56,120 Speaker 1: solar storm narrowly missed Earth. Conveniently, though, it hit the 591 00:36:56,160 --> 00:37:00,719 Speaker 1: Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory A or stereo AA, which is 592 00:37:00,760 --> 00:37:04,520 Speaker 1: in orbit around the Sun. So it was simultaneously a 593 00:37:04,560 --> 00:37:07,920 Speaker 1: close call and also a cool source of new data. 594 00:37:08,960 --> 00:37:09,920 Speaker 3: Yeah. 595 00:37:10,200 --> 00:37:14,520 Speaker 2: I like there was another moment of serendipity of literally 596 00:37:14,560 --> 00:37:21,279 Speaker 2: hitting a solar observatory. Anyway, that's the Carrington event. I 597 00:37:21,400 --> 00:37:24,480 Speaker 2: find it fascinating. Do you have some listener mail? I 598 00:37:24,600 --> 00:37:27,240 Speaker 2: do have listener mail. The listener mail is from frequent 599 00:37:27,320 --> 00:37:33,399 Speaker 2: correspondent Caitlin, and Caitlyn wrote after our IUD episode. Kaitlyn wrote, Hi, 600 00:37:33,600 --> 00:37:35,560 Speaker 2: Tracy and Holly. I was listening to the behind the 601 00:37:35,600 --> 00:37:37,879 Speaker 2: scenes about iud's and was so glad to hear about 602 00:37:37,920 --> 00:37:41,759 Speaker 2: the buffet of paid management options Tracy was offered. Definitely 603 00:37:41,800 --> 00:37:45,799 Speaker 2: something missing from too many folks experiences at the GYN. 604 00:37:46,520 --> 00:37:49,200 Speaker 2: This is perhaps an example of skewed data, but I 605 00:37:49,239 --> 00:37:53,279 Speaker 2: have definitely noticed a trend towards more compassionate and comprehensive 606 00:37:53,360 --> 00:37:57,280 Speaker 2: patient care across several medical disciplines over the last decade 607 00:37:57,400 --> 00:37:59,719 Speaker 2: or so. I'm disabled, so I see a lot of 608 00:38:00,480 --> 00:38:03,799 Speaker 2: for a wide variety of reasons, and I've long been 609 00:38:03,840 --> 00:38:06,160 Speaker 2: in the habit of assuming that they won't be very 610 00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:09,279 Speaker 2: familiar with my conditions and the breadth of symptoms. When 611 00:38:09,320 --> 00:38:11,319 Speaker 2: I moved for grad school and was getting set up 612 00:38:11,320 --> 00:38:13,319 Speaker 2: with new folks, I showed up at the dentist with 613 00:38:13,360 --> 00:38:16,239 Speaker 2: my notebook full health history and a textbook about my 614 00:38:16,280 --> 00:38:21,400 Speaker 2: disability and its systemic implications, with a colorful tab on 615 00:38:21,440 --> 00:38:25,120 Speaker 2: the section about dental concerns. The office photocopied it for 616 00:38:25,200 --> 00:38:28,440 Speaker 2: my chart, earning my loyal patronage. I don't know if 617 00:38:28,480 --> 00:38:31,160 Speaker 2: it's because I present myself as well informed and aware 618 00:38:31,280 --> 00:38:33,760 Speaker 2: of procedures and practices, or if it's a true shift, 619 00:38:34,120 --> 00:38:37,000 Speaker 2: but the general experience has gone from being told this 620 00:38:37,080 --> 00:38:38,440 Speaker 2: needs to happen, sign. 621 00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:40,520 Speaker 3: Here to this is the concern. 622 00:38:40,760 --> 00:38:44,000 Speaker 2: Here's what we recommend, here's other options, and if you 623 00:38:44,040 --> 00:38:47,799 Speaker 2: follow the recommendation, here is how we can manage pain, anxiety, 624 00:38:47,880 --> 00:38:50,400 Speaker 2: and any side effects. When I had to get a 625 00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:54,279 Speaker 2: transvaginal ultrasound, horrid an extra nurse came in to hold 626 00:38:54,280 --> 00:38:57,560 Speaker 2: my hand and I was offered noise canceling headphones and 627 00:38:57,760 --> 00:38:59,640 Speaker 2: was handed a warm blanket while I waited for them 628 00:38:59,680 --> 00:39:02,360 Speaker 2: to start. It felt so fancy, but that should be 629 00:39:02,400 --> 00:39:05,160 Speaker 2: the standard. This rambling email to say, I'm glad things 630 00:39:05,160 --> 00:39:07,600 Speaker 2: aren't shifting, but I also want people to know they 631 00:39:07,640 --> 00:39:11,640 Speaker 2: can and should advocate for themselves. Asking for basic care 632 00:39:11,719 --> 00:39:15,040 Speaker 2: and management isn't being precious or demanding. It's asking for 633 00:39:15,120 --> 00:39:19,160 Speaker 2: basic care. Unfortunately, it isn't always possible to leave a 634 00:39:19,200 --> 00:39:22,400 Speaker 2: provider who won't listen or isn't respectful of your wishes. 635 00:39:22,800 --> 00:39:25,279 Speaker 2: There are so many ways to get incremental improvements and 636 00:39:25,360 --> 00:39:28,200 Speaker 2: your healthcare. Hope all as well and that Holly is 637 00:39:28,320 --> 00:39:30,759 Speaker 2: enjoying spring while Tracy and the rest of us up 638 00:39:30,760 --> 00:39:34,319 Speaker 2: north finish winter. Caitlin, this email is from a little 639 00:39:34,320 --> 00:39:36,640 Speaker 2: more than a month ago. We are now solidly into 640 00:39:36,640 --> 00:39:39,160 Speaker 2: spring here in the North. I'm very excited about that. 641 00:39:39,200 --> 00:39:42,280 Speaker 2: Thank you so much, Kaitlin for this email. We also 642 00:39:42,440 --> 00:39:47,880 Speaker 2: have some photos of recent crimes done by Caitlin's Orange 643 00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:52,080 Speaker 2: Boy Kitty. So we have Orange Boy Kitty with a 644 00:39:52,120 --> 00:39:55,640 Speaker 2: bow tie up in the top of the closet and 645 00:39:56,000 --> 00:40:01,000 Speaker 2: in other shelves in the closet on top of the 646 00:40:01,080 --> 00:40:04,160 Speaker 2: air conditioner, one of those air conditioners that's like up 647 00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:06,040 Speaker 2: up high, mounted through the wall. 648 00:40:06,480 --> 00:40:09,600 Speaker 3: These are misdemeanors. They're misdemeanors. I love all of them. 649 00:40:09,640 --> 00:40:14,200 Speaker 2: And then some very lovely scenes of outdoor snowy, cold 650 00:40:14,200 --> 00:40:18,680 Speaker 2: looking river. Anyway, so thank you so much Caitlin for this. 651 00:40:18,840 --> 00:40:21,160 Speaker 2: So yeah, I think it's been a while, but we 652 00:40:21,280 --> 00:40:24,280 Speaker 2: sort of talked a little bit on the show about 653 00:40:24,560 --> 00:40:28,719 Speaker 2: general shifts in medicine in the US and how it 654 00:40:28,800 --> 00:40:33,280 Speaker 2: has moved some from being like a very paternalistic system 655 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:36,960 Speaker 2: where a doctor who was normally male would just sort 656 00:40:37,000 --> 00:40:40,879 Speaker 2: of hand down pronouncements and not really explain anything and 657 00:40:40,960 --> 00:40:45,839 Speaker 2: sometimes would only tell men what was going on, so 658 00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:48,319 Speaker 2: the husband would get the news, and it was up 659 00:40:48,360 --> 00:40:50,160 Speaker 2: to the husband whether to tell the wife. 660 00:40:50,200 --> 00:40:51,719 Speaker 3: Like, There's been a lot of things like that that 661 00:40:51,719 --> 00:40:54,920 Speaker 3: we've talked about. But I do. 662 00:40:54,800 --> 00:40:58,279 Speaker 2: Think obviously there are still a lot of folks who 663 00:40:58,320 --> 00:41:02,400 Speaker 2: have a really hard time accessing care and finding providers 664 00:41:02,440 --> 00:41:07,000 Speaker 2: that seem like they listen to them. But it does 665 00:41:07,040 --> 00:41:10,920 Speaker 2: seem like there has been a movement more toward informed 666 00:41:10,960 --> 00:41:15,040 Speaker 2: consent for things and being more collaborative with patients. Yeah, 667 00:41:15,400 --> 00:41:19,320 Speaker 2: as that was this email was inspired by the IUD episode, 668 00:41:19,360 --> 00:41:24,840 Speaker 2: and that episode talked about like, there are these recommendations 669 00:41:24,880 --> 00:41:28,839 Speaker 2: for pain relief now and a lot of people are 670 00:41:28,920 --> 00:41:32,000 Speaker 2: still not being offered pain relief, which just why I 671 00:41:32,040 --> 00:41:36,160 Speaker 2: hope that episode would give people a tool that they 672 00:41:36,200 --> 00:41:38,600 Speaker 2: could use to say to their doctor, this is actually 673 00:41:38,640 --> 00:41:41,320 Speaker 2: what the recommendation is now to be offered pain relief. 674 00:41:41,400 --> 00:41:45,000 Speaker 2: So so thank you so much Caitlin for this email. 675 00:41:45,520 --> 00:41:48,120 Speaker 2: And then I love all of these pictures of very 676 00:41:48,239 --> 00:41:49,440 Speaker 2: naughty kitty cat. 677 00:41:51,120 --> 00:41:54,440 Speaker 3: Misdemeanors. 678 00:41:54,480 --> 00:41:59,080 Speaker 2: Our bedroom closet, which is honestly one of the reasons 679 00:41:59,120 --> 00:42:01,920 Speaker 2: that we bought this house. There's the closet, and then 680 00:42:02,040 --> 00:42:04,399 Speaker 2: over on the left hand side of the closet there 681 00:42:04,440 --> 00:42:06,680 Speaker 2: is a door that I thought was going to lead 682 00:42:06,719 --> 00:42:10,440 Speaker 2: to like a fuse box or something like some archaic 683 00:42:10,719 --> 00:42:14,400 Speaker 2: electrical problem to have to deal with later. No, it 684 00:42:14,480 --> 00:42:18,799 Speaker 2: is how someone made shelves in the space underneath the 685 00:42:18,840 --> 00:42:23,520 Speaker 2: attic stairs, so it's like another closet inside the closet, 686 00:42:23,960 --> 00:42:26,839 Speaker 2: and boy do both my kitty cats like to get 687 00:42:26,840 --> 00:42:29,640 Speaker 2: in there anytime I opened the closet door. Because that 688 00:42:29,760 --> 00:42:33,520 Speaker 2: door doesn't fully shut the one on the inside and 689 00:42:33,960 --> 00:42:36,480 Speaker 2: love to get in there and sleep on my sweaters, 690 00:42:38,480 --> 00:42:40,440 Speaker 2: and I just let them. At this point, I'm like, 691 00:42:40,480 --> 00:42:43,480 Speaker 2: I'm gonna be covered in your fur anyway, So I 692 00:42:43,520 --> 00:42:45,840 Speaker 2: have some cat crying we could discuss on Friday. 693 00:42:45,960 --> 00:42:46,920 Speaker 1: I'm not proud of her. 694 00:42:51,239 --> 00:42:53,480 Speaker 2: So thank you so much again, Caitlin for this email 695 00:42:53,520 --> 00:42:55,600 Speaker 2: and for all your many emails that you send to us. 696 00:42:55,719 --> 00:42:57,680 Speaker 2: If you would like to send us a note, We're 697 00:42:57,719 --> 00:43:01,400 Speaker 2: a history podcast that i heeartradio dot If you would 698 00:43:01,440 --> 00:43:03,840 Speaker 2: like to see the show notes for this episode, it 699 00:43:03,920 --> 00:43:06,400 Speaker 2: is our website which is Missed Inhistory dot. 700 00:43:06,239 --> 00:43:08,640 Speaker 3: Com, and you can subscribe to the show on. 701 00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:10,920 Speaker 2: The iHeartRadio app or anywhere else if you'd like to 702 00:43:10,920 --> 00:43:18,800 Speaker 2: get your podcasts. Stuff you Missed in History Class is 703 00:43:18,840 --> 00:43:23,200 Speaker 2: a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit 704 00:43:23,239 --> 00:43:26,680 Speaker 2: the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 705 00:43:26,719 --> 00:43:27,560 Speaker 2: your favorite shows.