Stefan Burns19 January 2026

#365 - Space Weather Expert: Pole Shifts, NASA Cover-ups & Super Flares

1Frameworks

13Insights

Episode overview

Danny Jones interviews independent geophysics researcher Stefan Burns about solar storms, Earth's magnetic field, pole movement, and the possible technological effects of an extreme super flare. Burns distinguishes observations from speculation while connecting space weather to earthquakes, geomagnetic excursions, plasma cosmology, 3I/ATLAS, ancient sites, and Schumann resonances. The discussion also explains why independent measurement methods are needed before dramatic geophysical claims are treated as established.

Key ideas

A direct super flare could disable many satellites and cause widespread but uneven power-grid failures.
Earth's northern magnetic pole is moving rapidly, but pole position alone does not establish an imminent reversal.
The South Atlantic Anomaly exposes satellites to more energetic particles because the local magnetic field is unusually weak.
Geophysical anomalies should be confirmed with at least two independent measurement methods.
Observed solar-wind changes sometimes coincide with major earthquakes, though causation remains uncertain.
3I/ATLAS is best treated as an ambiguous interstellar object rather than prematurely labeled an ordinary comet or alien craft.
Claims about deep structures beneath Giza remain provisional without corroborating seismic or resistivity surveys.

Transcript available · source text is retained privately and is not published

Frameworks in this episode

Strategy7 steps

Two-Method Confirmation Rule

Never trust a geophysical or scientific anomaly until two independent methods agree.

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People & resources mentioned

Attributed to the moment in the episode. Timestamps are approximate.

People · 13

Danny JonesCoinedwe'll do this after the podcast. All right, that's all. Goodnight folks.
“All right, Stefan. Thank you for coming, dude. I'm excited to talk to you.”
▶ Watch at ~0:00approx.
Elon MuskMentionsmentioned
“then we see some Starlinks are falling out rates greater than maybe Elon would hope for”
▶ Watch at ~6:00approx.
Richard CarringtonMentionsBritish observer associated with the first recorded observation of a solar flare in 1859.
“Carrington, this British chap, was looking at the sun and he saw it start to flare”
▶ Watch at ~7:30approx.
Matt BeallMentionsPodcast host and collector discussed in connection with Egyptian stone vessels and ancient sites.
“talking to Matt Bell recently and he's, you know, he's a pottery freak uh cuz he has all the Egyptian vases”
▶ Watch at ~45:30approx.
Fusa MiyakeCoinedResearcher credited with first detecting large radioisotope spikes in tree rings.
“the researcher's name is Miyake, which is why they're called that. She first detected these huge radioisotope spikes in tree rings”
▶ Watch at ~1:15:00approx.
Sheldon BreinerMentionsMagnetometer pioneer whose surveys helped locate buried Olmec heads.
“What was his name? Sheldon Breiner. Sheldon Breiner. B R E I N E R.”
▶ Watch at ~1:50:30approx.
Hannes AlfvénRecommendsAstrophysicist and plasma scientist known for Alfvén waves and criticism of Big Bang cosmology.
“I think more people should read his work.”
▶ Watch at ~1:58:00approx.
Freeman DysonMentionsmentioned
“people like Freeman Dyson who you know looked into rock circuits and the electromagnetic dynamics of earthquakes and he was with NASA”
▶ Watch at ~2:06:30approx.
Avi LoebMentionsmentioned
“I heard that so Avi was telling us that it was like December 16th was when it was going to be closest to Earth”
▶ Watch at ~2:09:30approx.
Randall CarlsonMentionsResearcher discussed for work on Younger Dryas geology and an Azores-Atlantis hypothesis.
“I recently had Randall on my show, and we just talked about all this stuff.”
▶ Watch at ~2:27:30approx.
Jeffrey DrumMentionsGiza-based researcher with the Land of Chem YouTube channel who studies pyramid claims.
“this guy on here, Jeffrey Drum, who has a he lives in Giza like right by the pyramids”
▶ Watch at ~2:41:30approx.
Rupert SheldrakeCoinedOriginator of the morphic resonance idea referenced in the discussion.
“like a different approach to morphic resonance like Rupert Sheldrake's idea?”
▶ Watch at ~2:57:00approx.
Stefan BurnsCoinedIndependent geology and geophysics researcher who publishes videos about Earth, the Sun, and space weather.
“My YouTube channel is @stephanburns, so s t e f a n b u r n s”
▶ Watch at ~3:06:30approx.

Resources · 30

Carrington EventMentionsevent
“in 1859, there was the Carrington event that was a really big solar flare and coronal mass ejection impact”
▶ Watch at ~2:00approx.
Gannon StormMentionsevent
“triggered what's known as the Mother's Day storm or the Gannon storm”
▶ Watch at ~3:00approx.
Miyake EventsMentionsevent · Fusa Miyake
“They're called Miyake events.”
▶ Watch at ~3:30approx.
Younger DryasMentionsevent
“really powerful Miyake event that we're starting to get good data on right around the border of the Younger Dryas event”
▶ Watch at ~4:00approx.
StarlinkMentionsproduct · SpaceX
“we have quite a bit of data there in terms of Starlink”
▶ Watch at ~6:00approx.
Mizzen+MainRecommendscompany
“Mizzen and Main is offering our listeners 20% off your first purchase at mizzenandmain.com”
▶ Watch at ~15:30approx.
Ground-Penetrating RadarUsestool
“I was using that a ton. I'm really good with GPR.”
▶ Watch at ~29:00approx.
South Atlantic AnomalyMentionsplace
“And so that's what we see with the South Atlantic Anomaly.”
▶ Watch at ~40:00approx.
Göbekli TepeMentionsplace
“like beyond Göbekli Tepe.”
▶ Watch at ~46:00approx.
Xianrendong CaveMentionsplace
“Xianrendong? There you go.”
▶ Watch at ~46:30approx.
Yuchanyan CaveMentionsplace
“The Yuchanyan caves show uh early use of pottery by hunter-gatherer communities in China.”
▶ Watch at ~47:00approx.
Amanita TaraRecommendscompany
“And that's why I trust Amanita Tara. These guys are the real deal.”
▶ Watch at ~57:30approx.
Van Allen Radiation BeltsMentionsother
“what's it called, the Van Allen radiation belts?”
▶ Watch at ~59:00approx.
Gakkel RidgeMentionsplace
“the slowest part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is called Gakkel Ridge”
▶ Watch at ~1:05:00approx.
Great Tohoku EarthquakeMentionsevent
“with the magnitude 9.1 Great Tohoku earthquake, March 11th of 2011, Japan.”
▶ Watch at ~1:11:00approx.
Laschamp ExcursionMentionsevent
“like the Laschamp excursion, the field strength went down to like 5% of what it is now”
▶ Watch at ~1:18:00approx.
Derinkuyu Underground CityMentionsplace
“Derenkuyu is the one they found under the that house.”
▶ Watch at ~1:20:00approx.
Starfish PrimeMentionsevent
“I think that's Starfish Prime, if I recall correctly.”
▶ Watch at ~1:51:30approx.
James Webb Space TelescopeMentionstool
“The James Webb Telescope discovered an incredibly distant galaxy”
▶ Watch at ~2:05:30approx.
NASAMentionscompany
“there's a lot of really cool things though that come out of NASA”
▶ Watch at ~2:07:30approx.
3I/ATLASMentionsother
“how much have you been tracking the the 3I Atlas story?”
▶ Watch at ~2:09:30approx.
AtlantisMentionsplace
“That's why he thinks that perhaps Atlantis was there.”
▶ Watch at ~2:31:30approx.
AzoresMentionsplace
“So he thinks the the Azores um is that location.”
▶ Watch at ~2:31:30approx.
Giza PlateauMentionsplace
“You did a widespread 3D seismic and resistivity survey of the Giza plateau.”
▶ Watch at ~2:40:30approx.
Land of ChemMentionswebsite · Jeffrey Drum
“And he's a great YouTube channel called Land of Chem.”
▶ Watch at ~2:41:30approx.
Ancient AliensUsestv show
“I was watching Ancient Aliens.”
▶ Watch at ~2:45:30approx.
Schumann ResonancesMentionsother
“they form these standing waves. And specifically 7.8 hertz is approximately the frequency and therefore the wavelength of the circumference of the Earth.”
▶ Watch at ~2:54:00approx.
Babylon BatteryMentionsother
“there was like the you know, the Babylon battery”
▶ Watch at ~3:06:00approx.
Stefan Burns YouTube ChannelCoinedwebsite · Stefan Burns
“My YouTube channel is @stephanburns”
▶ Watch at ~3:06:30approx.
Earth EvolutionCoinedwebsite · Stefan Burns
“I also have a website that's earthevolution.com.”
▶ Watch at ~3:06:30approx.

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Insights & moments

The myth-busts, hot takes, explainers, and tools worth keeping.

Myth Buster· 1

Myth Buster2:37:00

The Giza pyramid 'shafts' scan controversy, and why it doesn't hold up yet

Burns breaks down why the widely-shared claim of kilometers-deep chambers under the Khafre pyramid, based on satellite SAR radar, is shaky: the team's own earlier paper said the method couldn't detect that deep, and no second confirming method (seismic, resistivity) has been used.

The Italian team's first paper stated their radar couldn't penetrate deep enough into bedrock to find shafts
Their later 3D render showed seven king's-chamber-sized voids known not to exist inside the pyramid
SAR radar data is highly sensitive to processing choices (filters, color scales) that can manufacture apparent anomalies
Local Giza-based researcher Jeffrey Drum says Egyptian antiquities officials are angry the team published without consulting them first

“how come in your first paper... you explained that the reason you couldn't find the shaft under the Khafre pyramid was because you can't see…”
Danny Jones (paraphrasing Jeffrey Drum) · 2:42:00

#giza#pyramids#sar radar#myth busting

Hot Take· 1

Hot Take2:09:30

Why Burns thinks 3I/ATLAS probably isn't 'just a comet'

Burns lays out the observational evidence, tightly collimated jets, an unusually high bulk-density profile if the composition differs from ice, that led him to classify the interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS as an ambiguous 'interstellar object' rather than a standard comet, while pushing back on claims it's an alien craft.

3I/ATLAS shows tightly collimated jets unlike a typical diffuse cometary tail
Jets in space are usually associated with a rotating, magnetized central body
NASA's imagery was criticized for being zoomed in on the coma rather than capturing wide-angle context amateur astronomers provided
Burns calls it an 'interstellar object' rather than committing to either 'just a comet' or an alien-craft narrative

“to call everything just a comet is... a little short-sighted cuz comets have a fairly low bulk density”
Stefan Burns · 2:10:30

“So we call it a interstellar object.”
Stefan Burns · 2:15:00

#3i atlas#interstellar object#comets#nasa

Explainer· 8

Explainer02:00

The Carrington Event and history's biggest solar storms

Stefan Burns walks through the 1859 Carrington Event, the first observed solar flare, and the handful of comparable storms since (1872, 1921, a near-miss in 2012, the 2024 Gannon storm). Telegraph lines caught fire and operated on residual current alone during the Carrington impact.

Carrington event (1859) is the benchmark 'Carrington-level' solar storm, estimated up to X65 in flare intensity
Comparable storms hit in 1872, 1921, and nearly in 2012
May 2024's 'Gannon storm' was strong but weaker than a true Carrington-level event
In 1859 telegraph stations caught fire and lines melted within about 16 hours of the flare

“in less than 24 hours... telegraph stations were catching fire and lines were like melting”
Stefan Burns · 08:00

#solar storms#space weather#history#carrington event

Explainer05:00

What would actually happen if Earth took a direct super flare hit

Burns explains why a 'super flare', roughly 10 to 100 times stronger than a Carrington event, would likely knock out the majority of satellites via deep dielectric charging and atmospheric drag, and could cause isolated (not one single global) power grid blackouts.

A super flare acts like a giant EMP, causing deep dielectric charging that can short-circuit satellites
The upper atmosphere expands and thickens, dragging low-orbit satellites down until they burn up
Starlink already sees elevated fall-out rates from regular solar storms
Likely outcome: majority of satellites down, isolated (not one uniform global) blackouts

“if you had a super flare, like a real legit super flare directly aimed at earth, impacted, I think probably the majority of satellites would…”
Stefan Burns · 06:30

#super flare#satellites#power grid#space weather

Explainer38:30

Inside the South Atlantic Anomaly, Earth's weakest magnetic spot

Burns explains the South Atlantic Anomaly centered near Rio de Janeiro, where Earth's magnetic field drops to roughly a third of its strength at the poles. He covers how it's tracked historically and what it means for satellites passing through it.

Centered roughly on Rio de Janeiro, it's the largest and weakest magnetic anomaly on Earth
Field strength there is about 22,000 nT versus 67,000 nT at the South Magnetic Pole
Caused by patches of reverse magnetic flux near the core-mantle boundary canceling the normal field
Satellites passing through it take more hits from high-energy cosmic particles

“this is uh where the magnetic field on the Earth is the weakest and quite a bit so. It has been growing, has been weakening…”
Stefan Burns · 38:30

#south atlantic anomaly#magnetic field#satellites#geophysics

Explainer52:00

How fast is the magnetic pole actually moving, and could it flip?

The Northern Hemisphere magnetic pole is currently drifting toward Siberia at about 40 km/year (down from a peak of 60 km/year), while the Southern pole moves more slowly. Burns lays out the three signals scientists track to judge whether Earth is heading toward a geomagnetic excursion or full reversal.

Northern magnetic pole moving ~40 km/year toward Siberia, having decelerated from a peak of ~60 km/year
Southern magnetic pole moving only ~10 km/year
Three tracking signals: overall field strength, pole location, and the dipole-to-quadrupole ratio
A full reversal requires the dipole field to collapse entirely before re-emerging in reverse polarity; an excursion aborts partway

“Right now, the magnetic pole in the Northern Hemisphere is moving about 40 km per year”
Stefan Burns · 53:30

#magnetic pole shift#geomagnetic reversal#earth's magnetic field

Explainer1:10:00

The odd link between solar wind drop-outs and major earthquakes

Burns discusses an observed correlation between sudden drops in solar wind density and major earthquakes, including the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan, and explains the mechanism theorized by NASA physicist Friedman Freund involving electrical 'rock circuits' in strained igneous rock.

A sharp drop in solar wind density preceded the March 2011 magnitude 9.1 Tohoku earthquake by hours to days
'High-speed stream' solar wind structures seem more correlated with earthquakes than large storm impacts
Friedman Freund's rock-circuit theory: strained igneous rock generates electric charge that could serve as an early-warning signal
Before a 2005 magnitude ~5.1 Bay Area quake, atmospheric conductivity sensors spiked to their max reading and went offline

“right around the time... with the magnitude 9.1 Great Tohoku earthquake... We had a super big drop in the solar wind density, like anomalous drop.”
Stefan Burns · 1:10:30

#earthquakes#solar wind#space weather#geophysics

Explainer1:54:00

The plasma physicist who never bought the Big Bang

Burns discusses Hannes Alfvén, the astrophysicist behind Alfvén waves, who argued cosmology should be built from lab plasma experiments and direct observations rather than untested math, and who rejected the Big Bang in favor of a matter-antimatter oscillating universe model.

Alfvén argued theories should be built from observed plasma physics and probe data, not speculative math
He proposed a matter-antimatter balance model where boundary annihilation drives an expanding-contracting universe cycle
Early spacecraft data disproved the assumption that Earth's magnetic field was a simple dipole, validating his observation-first approach
Burns cites the recent James Webb detection of unexpectedly massive early galaxies as evidence the standard timeline keeps getting revised

“I think that what we see with our... magnetosphere, and what we see in the interplanetary environment should be taken, cuz those are the best…”
Stefan Burns · 1:56:00

#hannes alfven#big bang#plasma cosmology#astrophysics

Explainer2:53:00

Why Schumann resonances match human brain wave frequencies

Burns explains Schumann resonances, standing electromagnetic waves generated by global lightning strikes at 7.8 Hz and harmonics, and why their frequency and strength match human brain waves closely enough that researchers have measured brief coherence between the two.

Schumann resonances arise because Earth's circumference matches a 7.8 Hz standing wave at light speed
Both Schumann resonances and human brain waves are measured in the same pico-Tesla range
Matching frequency and strength (not just frequency) is what allows for potential resonance rather than one being 'noise'
Researchers have measured brief windows of coherence between individual brain waves and Schumann resonances

“if you have the same strength and frequency, that means there can be resonance between them”
Stefan Burns · 2:55:30

#schumann resonance#brain waves#earth frequency

Explainer3:03:00

The Yuga cycle theory and why 500 AD might mark humanity's low point

Burns connects the Hindu Yuga cycle concept, roughly mapped to the ~24,000-year precessional cycle, to the fall of the Roman Empire around 500 AD, when the Temple of Isis closed and Europe entered a historical dark age.

Yuga cycles roughly track the same ~24,000-year precessional cycle the Greeks called the Great Year
One interpretation places the Kali Yuga's low point at the fall of Rome, ~500 AD
Europe's historical record is nearly blank from roughly 500-600 AD
Burns sees today's energy/frequency-based technology shift as evidence of ascent out of the low point

“we were at the absolute bottom of the consciousness cycle with the fall of the Roman Empire around 500 AD. Which makes a lot of…”
Stefan Burns · 3:03:30

#yuga cycle#precession#ancient history

Story· 2

Story1:05:00

The hidden supervolcano sitting under the Arctic magnetic pole

Burns describes Gakkel Ridge, an ultra-slow-spreading section of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the Arctic, home to a caldera roughly 40-80 km across that erupted an estimated 3,000 cubic kilometers of material about 1.1 million years ago, larger than Yellowstone's biggest known eruption.

Gakkel Ridge spreads at just 0.6 cm/year, among the slowest on Earth
The caldera is ~40-80 km across and 1.2 km deep, formed by a supervolcano eruption ~1.1 million years ago
1999 seismic activity there produced three new volcanoes and underwater pyroclastic flows
The magnetic pole currently sits over this exact region, which Burns finds noteworthy though not alarming

“I just think that there's probably a reason why one of the biggest supervolcanoes that we've identified on Earth is right where the magnetic pole…”
Stefan Burns · 1:08:30

#supervolcano#arctic#gakkel ridge#geology

Story2:29:30

Randall Carlson's theory linking melting ice sheets to a sunken Azores 'Atlantis'

Burns relays geologist Randall Carlson's hypothesis that as North America and Scandinavia's ice sheets rebounded upward after the last ice age, the Azores, sitting at the same tectonic plate junction, would have subsided, potentially explaining ancient Atlantis legends.

Isostatic rebound is measured today in Canada and the Great Lakes region where ice sheets once sat
The Azores sit at a triple junction of the North American, European, and African plates
Carlson's theory: as surrounding plates rebound upward, the Azores junction subsides instead
Bathymetry shows the Azores wouldn't form a clean plateau even at 400 ft lower ice-age sea levels, supporting a subsidence explanation

“he thinks the Azores... is that location. That's why he thinks that perhaps Atlantis was there.”
Stefan Burns · 2:31:30

#younger dryas#randall carlson#azores#atlantis

Tool· 1

Tool28:30

How ground-penetrating radar actually finds things underground

Burns explains how GPR works, broadcasting low-frequency electromagnetic waves into the ground and reading reflections, and recounts using it to locate a WWII Japanese POW's remains at a Monterey military cemetery. He covers drone-based GPR, ice-penetrating surveys, and road-scanning applications.

GPR broadcasts electromagnetic waves and reads reflections off different subsurface layers
Wet clay soil absorbs energy and makes GPR data harder to read
Burns used GPR to locate a specific WWII Japanese POW burial site at a Monterey, CA military cemetery
GPR passes through ice easily, enabling deep mapping in Greenland; also used now for road/pothole scanning via drone

“I was able to find some anomalous signatures with the GPR and then they dug there and turns out we were right on. They got…”
Stefan Burns · 30:30

#ground penetrating radar#gpr#geophysics tools#archaeology