Space Hurricane Seen Above Magnetic North Pole Was Raining Electrons (businessinsider.com) 42
The first space hurricane ever was spotted in August 2014, consisting of "an eddy of plasma, a type of superhot, charged gas found throughout the solar system," reports Business Insider. "And instead of rain, this storm brought showers of electrons." From the report: In August 2014, satellites observed a swirling mass with a quiet center more than 125 miles above the North Pole. The space hurricane was more than 620 miles wide and high in the sky -- it formed in the ionosphere, between 50 and 600 miles up. Lockwood and his coauthors used the satellite data to create a 3D model of the storm. The space hurricane lasted eight hours, swirling counterclockwise. The researchers said it had several spiral arms snaking out from its center, a bit like a spiral galaxy. By plugging the satellite data into a computer model, Lockwood and his collaborators were able to reproduce the storm and figure out what caused it. They found that charged particles emitted by the sun's upper atmosphere, the corona, were to blame.
This steady stream of solar particles and coronal plasma is known as solar wind. It moves at about 1 million miles an hour. As solar wind reaches Earth, it encounters the planet's magnetic field. Earth has such a field because of the swirling liquid iron and nickel in its outer core, which gives rise to electric currents. The magnetosphere protects the planet from deadly radiation from the sun but also retains a tiny layer of plasma from that solar wind. Typically, solar winds glance off this protective sheath. But sometimes the incoming charged particles and plasma interact with either the trapped plasma or the electrical currents generating the field. Such interactions create disturbances in the magnetosphere. The 2014 space hurricane was one such disturbance.
Usually, magnetic fields don't mix. But if they do come close, portions of the fields can get realigned and even merge, forming a new pattern of magnetic energy. That's what likely happened on the day of the space storm: An influx of solar wind energy formed a new pattern above Earth's magnetic north pole. The storm acted as a channel from space into Earth's atmosphere, funneling some electrons down past the planet's armor. This particle rain could have wreaked havoc on our high-frequency radio communications, radar-detection systems, or satellite technology, the study's authors said. That's because charged solar particles that seep through Earth's magnetic field can cause malfunctions in computers and circuitry on satellites and the International Space Station. Luckily, in this case, no issues were observed.
This steady stream of solar particles and coronal plasma is known as solar wind. It moves at about 1 million miles an hour. As solar wind reaches Earth, it encounters the planet's magnetic field. Earth has such a field because of the swirling liquid iron and nickel in its outer core, which gives rise to electric currents. The magnetosphere protects the planet from deadly radiation from the sun but also retains a tiny layer of plasma from that solar wind. Typically, solar winds glance off this protective sheath. But sometimes the incoming charged particles and plasma interact with either the trapped plasma or the electrical currents generating the field. Such interactions create disturbances in the magnetosphere. The 2014 space hurricane was one such disturbance.
Usually, magnetic fields don't mix. But if they do come close, portions of the fields can get realigned and even merge, forming a new pattern of magnetic energy. That's what likely happened on the day of the space storm: An influx of solar wind energy formed a new pattern above Earth's magnetic north pole. The storm acted as a channel from space into Earth's atmosphere, funneling some electrons down past the planet's armor. This particle rain could have wreaked havoc on our high-frequency radio communications, radar-detection systems, or satellite technology, the study's authors said. That's because charged solar particles that seep through Earth's magnetic field can cause malfunctions in computers and circuitry on satellites and the International Space Station. Luckily, in this case, no issues were observed.
Space weather affect Earth weather patterns? (Score:2)
Before writing me off, we already know that auro
Re: (Score:2)
I think it's fair to conclude this has an affect on weather but probably less on climate. Jet stream is probably better described as a produce of global climate and it affects weather patterns. It would seem this would likely effect storms but in a more localized fashion.
I am not a weather expert but the jet stream is mainly determined by interactions in the ocean if I understand correctly. In particular, this includes seasonal changes, ocean temperatures, and how these two affect other phenomena that play
Not Crazy - Being Studied (Score:3)
In fact, there is an old type of particle detector, the cloud chamber, that relies on this
Re: Not Crazy - Being Studied (Score:1)
...a possible link between cosmic rays (which are generally much higher in energy than particles in the solar wind) and cloud formation. This is a somewhat different mechanism to what you suggest but effectively high energy particles ionize the atmosphere as they pass through it which causes nucleation centres for water droplets which can cause clouds to form.
Repeat after me: HAARP is for talking to submarines.
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Well, it makes nice patterns in the sky at night - it's what powers the Northern and Southern lights, after all.
And yes, it has an effect - the emissions are caused because of excitation of atoms in the upper atmosphere, giving off light when they drop back to ground state. It potentially also breaks molecules apart and they get reformed in various ways.
But I doubt it has an effect - we've studied the solar cycle for decades so it might have an effect on weather, but climate not so much. It might also wreak
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Well, it makes nice patterns in the sky at night - it's what powers the Northern and Southern lights, after all.
Not cosmic rays. These are high-energy protons and nuclei that strike the upper atmosphere where they shatter nuclei in the atmosphere creating showers of high-energy particles of which really only the muons and neutrinos make it to ground level. They are too high in energy to get noticeably deflected by the Earth's magnetic field and not enough in number to generate enough light to be visible. They are also not subject to the solar cycle since they do not come from the sun.
At ground level, you get rou
Being so high & wide, did it affect SAT orbits (Score:2)
FTFA: "The space hurricane was more than 620 miles wide and high in the sky -- it formed in the ionosphere, between 50 and 600 miles up."
My questions are:
1. Does this phenom affect orbit paths & positions of large and small SATs?
2. Surely this has happened before, and it will again: Were we already prepared for this one?
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Probably not since most satellites orbit above the atmosphere. Otherwise the air friction would decay their orbit.
Prepare for what? Boarding up the coastal cities in the sky?
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But the atmosphere actually goes to hundreds of miles past LEO, which is why things there experience drag and come down.
There is no hard boundary to where space begins, there is atmosphere at 50 miles and 60 miles and 100 and 500 miles.
Space Hurricane (Score:2)
Space Hurricane
Sounds like the name of a SyFy Channel movie, probably with sharks, and lasers ... :-)
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This calls for a squadron of Space Force Guardians.
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Sharknado 2! A weird mix between Alien and Jaws.
First ever? (Score:3)
Or the first we have detected? Probably the latter. Still it's cool.
Haleluja It's raining EM (Score:2)
It's raining EM, hallelujah, it's raining EM, amen
I'm gonna go out to run and let myself get
Absolutely charged neg
It's raining EM, hallelujah
It's raining EM, every electron
small, ions, charged negative
Rough and tough and strong and mean
re (Score:1)
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I also don't understand how media managed to push a fear over something not dangerous.
Half of them managed to spend a whole year downplaying something that was dangerous.
So I suppose it's them being fair and balanced?
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Half of them managed to spend a whole year downplaying something that was dangerous.
What was the dangerous thing?
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What was the dangerous thing?
Having a toddler in charge of the country during a pandemic.
Pedantry Central (and the NOAA) called... (Score:3)
Obviously this article is titled because the linked piece on Business Insider uses the term hurricane.
But given that this is a tech news web site and that use of correct terminology helps convey understanding... maybe we could consider calling it a "Particle Storm" or "Particle Burst"?
Re: Pedantry Central (and the NOAA) called... (Score:2)
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That's really, genuinely interesting...
I know its too easy to lose sight of the actual message if you focus on the presentation, but I remember reading a slashdot article a while back that talked about the possibility of a "super-Earth" out past the orbit of Pluto, and a friend, reading over my shoulder, asked, "So, there's like another Earth, only much bigger, in the far reaches of the solar system?" I had to explain
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Obviously this article is titled because the linked piece on Business Insider uses the term hurricane.
The linked scientific paper published in Nature also uses hurricane in the title, so I think blaming Business Insider is unfair.
the corona, were to blame. (Score:2)
Re: the corona, were to blame. (Score:2)
Re: the corona, were to blame. (Score:2)
Sadly covid ruined my other favorite southern euphamism.
Hes got a case of the SARS. Sompin Aint Right Syndrome.
Raining electrons... OR.. (Score:2)
https://youtu.be/npjF032TDDQ [youtu.be]
And now that Ive got that stuck in your head... muahahhaha
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I was thinking more of this [youtube.com]...
Hallelujah!