On the little-known consequences of the 4 August 1972 ultra-fast coronal mass ejecta: Facts, commentary, and call to action

Although the magnetic storm index, Dst, dipped to only-125 nT, the magnetopause was observed within 5.2 R-E and the plasmapause within 2 R-E. Widespread electric- and communication-grid disturbances plagued North America late on 4 August.

There was an additional effect, long buried in the Vietnam War archives that add credence to the severity of the storm impact: a nearly instantaneous, unintended detonation of dozens of sea mines south of Hai Phong, North Vietnam on 4 August 1972. The U.S. Navy attributed the dramatic event to magnetic perturbations of solar storms. Herein we discuss how such a finding is broadly consistent with terrestrial effects and technological impacts of the 4 August 1972 event and the propagation of major eruptive activity from the Sun to the Earth.