Study Warns Solar Storm Could Cost U.S. Grid $2 Billion a Day
Updated
Updated · Quartz · Sep 4
Study Warns Solar Storm Could Cost U.S. Grid $2 Billion a Day
3 articles · Updated · Quartz · Sep 4
Summary
$1.5 billion to $2 billion in daily losses could hit the U.S. if a Carrington-scale solar storm disrupts power, with a new AGU Advances study calling it the most detailed grid-risk accounting yet.
5.1 million people and 135,000 businesses could lose electricity because geomagnetically induced currents would flow through high-voltage lines, especially where resistant bedrock in the East Coast and Northern Plains prevents the charge from dissipating.
Hours to several weeks may be needed to restore service, depending on transformer damage and spare-part availability; manufacturing, education and entertainment would take the biggest economic hit.
The eastern interconnection is especially exposed because a voltage problem in one state can cascade from Maine to Washington, while Texas operates largely on a separate grid.
NERC says the grid can likely withstand a storm two to three times stronger than the 2024 Gannon event, but researchers and outside reviewers warn anything beyond that could push aging transformer-heavy infrastructure toward collapse.
If a 2024 solar storm strained the grid, what happens when a Carrington-level event plunges millions into darkness for days?
With grid operating margins tightening in 2026, could a brief six-hour warning truly save the economy from a catastrophic solar blackout?
Solar Storms, Grid Collapse, and Economic Fallout: How the 2024 Gannon Event Exposed a $2 Billion-a-Day Risk
Overview
In May 2024, a series of powerful solar eruptions triggered the Gannon solar storm, the most severe in two decades. This event created a massive wall of ionospheric plasma over North America, which severely disrupted GPS signals. As a result, U.S. agriculture suffered major delays and economic losses, and aviation safety was threatened by inaccurate altitude readings. Thanks to proactive alerts, grid operators took precautionary measures that prevented widespread blackouts. The storm highlighted how geomagnetically induced currents, especially in regions with resistive bedrock, can surge into power lines and threaten transformers. New technologies like Neutral Blocking Devices and proactive grid islanding now help protect critical infrastructure from such damage.