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Space Weather Belongs In The Conversation About EMF Exposure And Human Health
By: Sarah Starr
When the Sun erupts, the effects can reach far beyond a spectacular aurora.
Space weather changes Earth’s electromagnetic environment and can disrupt communications, navigation, satellites, and power systems. I believe those connections deserve greater attention in research on electromagnetic exposure and human health.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is asking the public for information about electromagnetic fields, radiofrequency radiation, and wireless exposure. Comments are due October 21, 2026. The agency is gathering evidence and recommendations to inform its assessment and future research priorities.
I prepared a paper titled “Space Weather, Radio Frequency Exposure, and Human Health” because I want space weather included explicitly in that research agenda.
My central request is straightforward: measure natural electromagnetic conditions alongside actual wireless exposure and health outcomes. Investigate whether their combined effects differ from those of either exposure alone.
We examine phones, towers, Wi-Fi, and other technologies. We also monitor solar activity and geomagnetic disturbances. I want researchers to connect those observations.
What are we missing when we don’t study them together?
Why I Wrote This Paper Now
My work sits at an unusual crossroads.
I’ve spent years following space-weather forecasting, solar cycles, astrology, consciousness education, and questions about non-human intelligence. These interests shape the questions I ask about our relationship with the wider cosmic environment.
For this paper, I focused on published scientific studies, government assessments, and specific research recommendations.
The HHS request creates an opportunity to bring those questions into a public process. I want the agency to consider the natural electromagnetic environment alongside human-made sources, with measurements that can establish which conditions matter for health.
How Space Weather Connects To Wireless Systems
NOAA explains that geomagnetic storms change currents and fields around Earth. Solar activity also changes the ionosphere, affecting how some radio signals travel and whether they can be received. Strong events can interfere with navigation and damage or disrupt infrastructure.
These are documented connections between solar activity and electromagnetic systems. NOAA’s space-weather scales describe the different hazards.
The next question is what those changing conditions mean for people.
A disrupted radio signal does not automatically mean a person received a higher radiation dose. We need measurements that connect environmental conditions, actual exposure, and health observations.
That is the work I am asking HHS to support.
Magnetic-Field Changes, Auroras And Natural Radiation
Changes in Earth’s magnetic field deserve geographically specific attention. ESA’s Swarm mission documents weakening in some regions and strengthening in others. A single global assumption cannot describe conditions everywhere. ESA explains these regional changes here.
The unusually southern auroras during strong storms are a visible reminder that the near-Earth environment is dynamic. They create valuable opportunities for coordinated monitoring, although an aurora sighting alone does not establish a hazardous radiation dose at ground level.
My paper also discusses solar energetic particles, cosmic radiation, and thunderstorm-associated gamma rays. These have different origins and exposure pathways. Studying them requires the right instruments and attention to location, altitude, shielding, energy, and duration.
The goal is to identify actual exposures and their consequences, rather than group every field or form of radiation under one label.
What The Health Research Gives Us To Investigate
A study of 809 older men reported associations between geomagnetic disturbances and reduced heart-rate variability. A separate South Korean study reported associations between geomagnetic activity and mortality.
These observational findings give researchers specific questions to investigate.
They do not settle the causes or establish that every person experiences an effect. My paper calls for independent replication, better exposure measurements, and studies across different populations.
I also want researchers to test whether measured wireless exposure changes any observed relationship. That requires a study designed to examine the interaction directly.
Wildlife And Ecosystems Belong In This Conversation
Some animals use magnetic information to navigate. Research has examined bird movements during geomagnetic disturbances and magnetic-compass orientation under particular electromagnetic-noise conditions.
These findings support concrete environmental questions: do specific exposures alter orientation or migration, and do those changes affect survival, reproduction, or ecological function?
My paper asks for realistic measurements, appropriate controls, and independent replication. An effect observed in one species or experimental setting should guide further study rather than become an assumption about every organism or wireless system.
Could Infrastructure Failures Create Indirect Health Risks During Solar Storms?
Yes. Public health depends on more than direct biological effects.
Electricity supports medical equipment, heating, cooling, and medicine storage. Communications support emergency response and access to care. When these systems fail, communities can face serious consequences.
Space-weather preparedness therefore belongs in the health discussion alongside exposure research. Understanding who depends on vulnerable systems, and which backup arrangements work, can help protect people during disruptions.
The Health Questions I Want HHS To Examine
I want research that connects environmental measurements with meaningful health outcomes.
My paper proposes studying cardiovascular measures, sleep, cognition, and prospectively reported symptoms during quiet and disturbed conditions. It calls for attention to children, pregnant people, older adults, people with medical implants, and exposed workers through appropriately designed studies.
My interests also include consciousness and subjective experience. Research can address these concerns by clearly distinguishing brain responses, cognitive performance, sleep, mood, and reported experience. A laboratory brainwave response is not proof of a consciousness shift, but it can provide a specific finding to investigate further.
People’s experiences deserve respectful attention. Strong study methods are how we determine which explanations the evidence supports.
A Research Program That Can Answer These Questions
I propose a coordinated study across several geomagnetic latitudes, using a pilot to establish the participant numbers and independent storm events needed.
Researchers would pair local magnetic-field records and personal RF monitoring with standardized health measurements. Selected sites could add suitable particle and gamma monitoring.
The study would account for other influences, including weather, air pollution, medications, activity, sleep, and awareness of storm forecasts. Its main outcomes and tests of combined exposure would be specified before analysis.
Independent teams should replicate the findings. Null results should be published alongside positive ones.
What I Am Asking Federal Agencies To Do
I want HHS to coordinate with NOAA, NASA, USGS, FAA, and FCC to:
Connect environmental monitoring with human exposure and health research.
Investigate meaningful wildlife and ecosystem outcomes.
Assess health consequences of power and communication disruptions.
Publish transparent methods and findings the public can understand.
My request is for sustained research that can identify meaningful risks, test proposed connections, and improve preparedness.
Read My Paper And Add Your Voice
My paper, “Space Weather, Radio Frequency Exposure, And Human Health,” explains the evidence I reviewed and the research program I am proposing.
I invite you to read it, share this article, and consider submitting your own thoughtful response to HHS
(Make sure you tell them Sarah Starr sent you!)
You can contribute relevant research, observations, questions, or recommendations. Write in your own words and distinguish what you experienced from what has been measured or established. Comments and attachments may become public, so exclude sensitive personal information.
The comment deadline is October 21, 2026. The docket number is HHS-OASH-2026-0397.
Space weather deserves an explicit place in this research agenda. I want us to understand how our technologies and the changing natural environment relate to the health of people, wildlife, and the systems we depend on.
Sarah Starr✨
