Tag

Magnetosphere

All articles tagged with #magnetosphere

space-exploration9 days ago•92 min saved

StormWall: A six-satellite plasma shield could blunt solar superstorms

Scientists propose StormWall, a constellation of six bus‑sized satellites in geostationary orbit that would release gas to form a plasma barrier at Earth’s magnetosphere, potentially reducing the impact of solar superstorms by more than 50% (up to 84% in simulations of a 2024 event). While the concept is touted as feasible with current tech, it would be costly (billions), require large rockets, and raise environmental and safety questions, with further studies needed before any deployment.

via Live Science|

#magnetosphere #satellites #solar-storms

space-and-spaceflight29 days ago•16 min saved

StormWall: A Space Shield to Dampen Solar Storms

Scientists propose ‘StormWall,’ a constellation of mass-loading spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit that would ionize materials to create magnetospheric plasma, aiming to suppress magnetic reconnection during solar storms and potentially halve their impact. While conceptually feasible, major challenges remain in cost, maintenance, and orbital optimization before any deployment could be considered.

via Gizmodo|

#geoengineering #geomagnetic-storms #magnetosphere

science1 month ago•42 min saved

Exoplanet Magnetospheres Detected: A Magnetic Window Into Distant Worlds

Scientists using ESO's Very Large Telescope and Gemini North measured wind speeds on seven hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets and found patterns best explained by global magnetic fields, marking the first robust evidence of magnetospheres around worlds beyond our solar system. The inferred magnetic strengths are roughly four times Saturn’s and about half Jupiter’s. This breakthrough opens a new window for exoplanet research, suggesting magnetically driven aurorae and paving the way for future ELT observations to characterize smaller, potentially habitable worlds.

via Good News Network|

#eso #exoplanets #magnetic-field

science1 month ago•41 min saved

Scientists propose space-based chemical shield to deflect severe solar storms

Researchers suggest releasing trace chemical clouds into Earth's magnetosphere to form a protective shield against powerful solar storms. The idea is highly speculative and would require major advances in feasibility, funding, and risk assessment, as well as careful consideration of potential environmental and geopolitical consequences before any real-world testing.

via Yahoo|

#environmental-impacts #geoengineering #magnetosphere

space1 month ago•70 min saved

StormWall: a six-satellite plasma shield could blunt big solar storms

A Boston University team led by Brian Walsh proposes StormWall, a six-satellite fleet in geosynchronous orbit that would release mass-loading materials (e.g., barium, lithium, sodium, calcium) which ionize into a plasma cloud at the sun-facing edge of Earth’s magnetosphere. The artificial plasma would thicken the magnetopause, disrupting magnetic reconnection and potentially reducing a major geomagnetic storm’s intensity by more than 50%. The idea targets protecting satellites, communications, GPS, and electrical grids. It would be a one-and-done deployment (no replenishment) and would be costly, but private space activity could tip the economics in its favor. The concept was tested via simulations of the May 2024 “Mother’s Day” storm and details were published in Space Weather (June 2).

via Space|

#magnetosphere #solar-storm #space

space1 month ago•7 min saved

JWST Reveals Saturn’s Apparent Spin Is a Wind-Driven Auroral Cycle

Using JWST, researchers mapped Saturn’s aurora-driven upper-atmosphere heating and found that winds generate electrical currents which power the aurora, creating a self-sustaining cycle that makes Saturn’s rotation appear to vary when measured by auroral signals rather than by actual spin; the results solve decades of confusion about a possible spin change and reveal a planetary heat-pump like link between Saturn’s atmosphere and magnetosphere, with implications for other worlds.

via ScienceDaily|

#atmospheric-winds #aurora #james-webb-space-telescope

space1 month ago•72 min saved

Mars shows Earthlike solar-wind bending in its atmosphere

NASA’s MAVEN data, gathered after it went quiet in 2025, reveal the Zwan-Wolf effect—an Earth-style solar-wind deflection—occurring in Mars’ upper atmosphere during a December 2023 solar storm. The finding suggests Mars’ atmosphere can host temporary magnetic structures that funnel charged particles, implying the effect may operate continuously there but is usually too weak to detect; the results were published in Nature Communications. NASA also notes MAVEN’s ongoing recovery efforts after a period of contact loss.

via Space|

#magnetosphere #mars-atmosphere #maven

space1 month ago•11 min saved

Smile mission goes aloft to map Earth’s magnetosphere in X-rays

A European-Chinese satellite named Smile launched on a Vega-C rocket to image Earth’s magnetosphere in X‑rays for the first time, offering an outside view of how the solar wind interacts with the magnetic shield. The mission, a rare ESA–Chinese Academy of Sciences partnership, aims to test global magnetosphere models and improve space-weather forecasts, with first images due about three months after launch and a planned three‑year mission.

via Space Daily|

#esa-china-collaboration #magnetosphere #smile-mission

science1 month ago•10 min saved

Europe–China’s SMILE mission launches to image Earth’s magnetic shield against the solar wind

SMILE, a joint European-Chinese mission, launched from Kourou to image Earth’s magnetopause with soft X‑ray optics, enabling a three-year study of how the magnetosphere responds to solar wind and space weather while highlighting ongoing EU‑China scientific cooperation.

via Space Daily|

#magnetopause #magnetosphere #science

space1 month ago•5 min saved

ESA-China SMILE Mission to X-ray Earth’s Magnetosphere During Solar Storms

A joint ESA-Chinese mission named SMILE will launch to study how solar storms interact with Earth's magnetosphere by capturing X-ray emissions—the first such observations—from a highly elliptical orbit that will reach up to 121,000 km above Earth. Equipped with an X-ray imager, UV imager, ion analyzer and magnetometer, SMILE aims to improve space-weather understanding for satellites, astronauts and power grids over an initial three-year mission.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#esa-china-collaboration #magnetosphere #smile

science1 month ago•10 min saved

Saturn’s ‘sound’ is data transformation, not a microphone recording

NASA’s Cassini and other missions record electromagnetic vibrations in Saturn’s magnetosphere and translate them into audio, but there is no actual sound in space. The eerie “sound of Saturn” arises from frequency shifting and time compression during data sonification, a methodological tool used to study data and make patterns audible.

via Space Daily|

#cassini #magnetosphere #nasa

science3 months ago•3 min saved

Earth's Hidden Magnetic Cavity Shields Moon From Cosmic Rays

A Science Advances study using Chang’e-4 data and NASA’s LRO observations finds that Earth’s magnetosphere forms an extended “cavity” that provides extra shielding for the Moon, reducing lunar surface radiation by about 20% during certain orbital phases—specifically in a pre-noon geometry—even when the Moon is outside the magnetosphere. The effect, mainly affecting low-energy ions that contribute to skin dose, was observed across 31 lunar cycles and could inform radiation protection for future missions, such as Artemis.

via Gizmodo|

#change-4 #cosmic-rays #magnetosphere

astronomy4 months ago•53 min saved

Ganymede's auroras echo Earth's northern lights, NASA finds

A 2021 Juno flyby showed Ganymede's ultraviolet auroras break into bead-like patches, not smooth ovals, mirroring Earth’s auroras and driven by Jupiter's magnetosphere; the finding by LPAP Liège researchers highlights Ganymede’s unique magnetic field and sets the stage for further study by the JUICE mission.

via Space|

#astronomy #auroras #ganymede

science4 months ago•3 min saved

Webb Maps Uranus in 3D, Unveiling Its Tilted Magnetosphere

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured Uranus’ upper atmosphere for nearly a full rotation, delivering the most detailed 3D view of its ionosphere and how energy moves through the atmosphere, where auroras form under the planet’s unusually tilted magnetic field, and it reinforces ideas about ongoing atmospheric cooling—while highlighting the uncertain outlook for a future Uranus mission.

via Futurism|

#atmosphere #auroras #james-webb-space-telescope

space4 months ago•6 min saved

NASA's ESCAPADE Deploys Twin Probes to Decode Mars Space Weather

NASA’s ESCAPADE mission launched in 2025 with two orbiters to study how the solar wind and Mars’ magnetosphere interact, revealing real-time atmospheric escape from the Red Planet and providing stereo measurements. The twins will fly in tandem near Mars after looping through a distant Earth magnetotail en route to a Sept. 2027 Mars arrival, also doing discovery science in Earth’s magnetotail. Findings will help protect future astronauts and inform Mars communications and ionospheric understanding as humanity prepares to explore the Red Planet.

via NASA Science (.gov)|

#magnetosphere #mars #nasa-mission