A terrifying mid-air event, which hospitalized passengers, has been traced back to a cosmic explosion that occurred long before humans walked the Earth. This revelation turns a routine flight into a story of interstellar cause and effect.
What Happened to JetBlue Flight 1613?
On October 30, a JetBlue Airbus A320 flying from Cancun to Newark suddenly lost altitude over Florida. The shaken pilot made an emergency landing in Tampa, sending at least 15 injured passengers to the hospital. Initial checks found no mechanical fault with the aircraft. Airbus suggested “intense solar radiation,” but solar observatories recorded no major flares. This left a critical question: what invisible force hit the plane?
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Who or What—is the Real Culprit?
According to space weather expert Clive Dyer of the University of Surrey, the likely offender was a cosmic ray. This was not a solar event but something far older and more distant. “Cosmic rays can cause a simple bit flip, like a 0 to 1 or 1 to 0. They can mess up information and make things go wrong,” Dyer told Space.com. His research points to a stunning origin: a supernova explosion outside our Milky Way galaxy.
What Does a “Supernova Hit” Mean for a Plane?
Millions of years ago, a star exploded, sending particles across space at light speed. One particle finally reached Earth and hit JetBlue’s electronics, known as a “single-event upset.” It can generate enough current to burn a circuit or alter data, causing sudden system failure.
Is This the First Time a Cosmic Ray Has Hit a Plane?
No. Dyer recalls a chillingly similar event. In 2008, Qantas Flight 72, also an Airbus, nosedived twice over the Pacific, causing serious injuries. He believes cosmic rays were responsible then, too. These incidents expose a silent vulnerability in our high-tech aviation systems, which operate in an environment constantly bombarded by ancient stellar debris.
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How Did Airbus Respond to the Threat?
The risk is serious enough to warrant a massive global response. Airbus has grounded over 6,000 airplanes to update their software. This “patch” is designed to fix systems vulnerable to these cosmic bit-flips. Dyer notes a growing concern: “A slight problem is that over 20 years, they’ve become complacent, because there have not been any [significant solar weather] events.” The JetBlue incident is a stark reminder that the threat from deep space is ever-present.
