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Struck by a cosmic ray: Galactic particles may have forced a passenger jet to make an emergency landing
By Morgan Ellis · Thursday, December 4, 2025
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Cosmic rays from a distant supernova may have disrupted avionics, causing a passenger jet to lose altitude unexpectedly in October.
- Modern microelectronics are vulnerable to high-energy galactic particles that can alter circuit states and trigger system failures.
- The incident prompted investigation into cosmic ray impacts on aircraft safety and the reliability of sensitive flight systems.
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Struck by a cosmic ray: Galactic particles may have forced a passenger jet to make an emergency landing
"Cosmic rays can interact with modern microelectronics and change the state of a circuit." A stream of high-energy particles from a distant supernova explosion may have caused a packed passenger jet to suddenly lose altitude in late October, forcing an emergency landing. The incident took… [+4996 chars]
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