NASA scientists have just identified mysterious shapes flying above Earth. But don’t worry, this doesn’t mean aliens are about to strike.
Using an imaging instrument called Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD), the experts discovered strange X and C shapes, appearing at surprising times in the most surprising places.
The researchers found that the structures danced around the ionosphere, the region where Earth’s atmosphere meets space. They say the discovery could help improve radio communications and space weather forecasting.
The ionosphere, which is approximately 50 to 400 miles (80 to 644 kilometers) above the Earth’s surface, becomes electrically charged as sunlight shines on it during the day.
This creates plasma bands of charged particles that are further influenced by the Earth’s magnetic field, such as Science Alertnotes.
And it is these plasma bubbles that form the X and C shapes that have been observed.
Observations from NASA’s GOLD mission show charged particles in the ionosphere forming an X-shape on October 7, 2019(F. Laskar et al.)
Previous studies have shown that plasma peaks after solar eruptions and large volcanic eruptions merge to form an X-shape.
The new data (published in 2009) The journal for geophysical research: space physics), it turns out that they can also form during so-called ‘quiet times’ – suggesting that more local factors also play a role.
Computer models indicate that lower atmospheric conditions can pull the plasma down, the scientists say in their study.
“Previous reports of mergers occurred only under geomagnetically disturbed conditions,” Fazlul Laskar, an ionospheric physicist at the University of Colorado and co-author of the paper, said in a statement to NASA.
“It is an unexpected phenomenon during geomagnetically quiet conditions.”
Experts are also puzzled by the appearance of C-shaped and inverted C-shaped bubbles in the plasma, which were thought to be caused by the Earth’s wind.
And yet, GOLD has recorded these Cs forming surprisingly close together – sometimes as much as 634 kilometers (400 miles) apart – again suggesting that more local factors are at play – whether that’s a tornado or something else.
These tight clusters of C-shapes appear to be relatively rare for now, with only two observed by GOLD so far. However, researchers plan to continue studying them to find out what causes them to form in the ionosphere.
“In this proximity, these two plasma bubbles with opposite shapes had never been imagined or imaged before,” said ionospheric physicist Deepak Karan of the University of Colorado in the same statement.
C-shaped and inverted-C-shaped plasma bubbles appear close together in the ionosphere on October 12, 2020 and December 26, 2021(D. Karan et al.)
Plasma in the ionosphere is essential for radio waves to travel long distances. This means that disturbances in the ionosphere can affect important communications and navigation infrastructure.
This study and the GOLD data provide further evidence of how innovations in scientific research and technology are helping us discover more about the Earth and the universe as a whole.
Astrophysicist Jeffrey Klenzing of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, who was not directly involved in the study, noted, “The fact that the shapes of the bubbles are so close together is very different. That tells us that the dynamics of the atmosphere are more complex than we expected.”
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