MSL Union

Tom’s Update

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 16:25:06 +0100

Hey guys! Hope your semester is going well so far and you’re taking care of yourselves.

This has been a busy 2026 so far….!

Looking forward to the May bank holidays and the warm weather. Roll on Summer!

Thanks and take care,

Tom

Filler text

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 10:09:57 Z

Hey, just needed to fill content

Our great support site update

Wed, 20 Apr 2016 15:16:00 +0100

'Severe geomagnetic storm scenario' and the 15 minute warning

Wed, 04 May 2011 11:45:00 +0100

New Scientist has an article about a recent NASA-funded report into plasma ejections from the Sun that could potentially wipe out our power grids with fairly chilling consequences:

The incursion of the plasma into our atmosphere causes rapid changes in the configuration of Earth’s magnetic field which, in turn, induce currents in the long wires of the power grids. The grids were not built to handle this sort of direct current electricity. The greatest danger is at the step-up and step-down transformers used to convert power from its transport voltage to domestically useful voltage. The increased DC current creates strong magnetic fields that saturate a transformer’s magnetic core. The result is runaway current in the transformer’s copper wiring, which rapidly heats up and melts.

Given that pretty much everything we do relies on electricity (water, food and heat are fairly important not to mention the world’s financial markets, healthcare, communications, the Internet) the simultaneous destruction of transformers would leave us severaly impaired.

According to the NAS [National Academy of Sciences] report, the impact of what it terms a “severe geomagnetic storm scenario” could be as high as $2 trillion [for the US alone]. And that’s just the first year after the storm. The NAS puts the recovery time at four to 10 years.

Chewie

Tue, 03 May 2011 14:20:00 +0100

A great piece about the creation of Chewbacca (it turns out it's a little more than George's dog, Indiana):

Chewbacca, the character, also started his life in the rough draft (May 1974) as a kind of barbarian alien prince on the jungle planet of Yavin:

...The eight foot Chewbacca, who resembles a huge, grey bushbaby with fierce baboon-like fang...

The article has great background on the development of Chewie's appearance and story arc (or lack of unless you subscribe to an alternative interpretation) along with great concept art and costume images.

I think my favourite image is this one of Ralph McQuarrie's where a Storm Trooper is wielding a lightsaber:

Also for anyone who's interested: the original Jabba/Han scene from A New Hope with Jabba as a human gangster with an Irish lilt.

(via Kottke)