Space Climate 7 Meeting Abstract
Electrical grids failures in Poland related to space weather effects
Agnieszka Gil-Swiderska (Siedlce University)
R. Modzelewska 1, Sz. Moskwa 2, A. Siluszyk 1, M. Siluszyk 1, and A. Wawrzynczak 1; 1. Siedlce University; 2. AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow
The impact of space weather events on energy infrastructure via geomagnetically induced currents is very well known and widely studied since, at least, Quebec blackout on 13rd of March 1989. Those effects are not very extensively studied in relation to Polish energy infrastructure. Pulkkinen and coauthors (2005), describing the Halloween Storm’s aftermath mentioned two episodes on SwePol Link cable. SwePol Link connects, under the Baltic Sea, Polish and Swedish energy infrastructure, by the 450 kV high voltage direct current. Taking into account the conductances map of Europe we consider the data of failures in electrical grids in the south part of Poland. Here we analyze two years during solar activity cycle 24: 2010 (an early ascending phase of the cycle, near te solar minimum) and 2014 (solar maximum). We consider 4 625 failures in 2010 and 10 656 in the first seven months of 2014, which might be connected with space weather effects. We analyze data of breakdowns with unidentified reasons, as well as failures connected to the aging and electronic devices, which occurred during the periods of an increased geomagnetic activity. Our results show that powerful phenomena of solar origin, somewhat disturbed in 2010 and January-July 2014 the electrical grids efficiency in southern Poland.
Mode of presentation: poster