Skip to content

Unexplainable.net

Watching The World Change

  • Interesting Headlines of January 2010 Information and Theories
  • Afterlife Communication – they’re closer than you think Ghost And Demons
  • The Mysterious Construction Of the Human Body Simply Unexplainable
  • Rover Pictures Show Surface Of Mars Covered In Human Faces Mars Coverage
  • Skeptics Weighing in on Assange UFO Files UFOs and Aliens
  • Living your successful life requires you to step out Self Improvement
  • Are You a Libra? Parents and Children Space and Astrology
  • An Introduction to Judaism Religion Articles

Satellite Safe Zone – Not So Safe

Posted on December 17, 2004 By jim No Comments on Satellite Safe Zone – Not So Safe

The beauty of science is that nothing is for certain. There are times when scientists think they have something figured out and then nature throws them for a loop. Just such an event happened last fall when the Sun erupted in some massive, record-shattering explosions that hurled billion of tons of electrified gas toward Earth.

Scientists realize that space is dangerous for unprotected satellites and astronauts, but they thought that they had found a small safe zone around Earth’s radiation belt — a shelter from these dangerous solar storms. It turns out that when the solar storm is strong enough, even this safe zone can become a major hot zone for dangerous radiation.

Image Right: In October 2003, huge bursts of plasma generated powerful electric fields, pushing Earth’s outer atmosphere (plasmasphere), into interplanetary space. Without the plasmasphere in the safe zone (gap between the two rings), a new, intense radiation belt formed in the region. The red ring represents the potential orbit of a satellite. In some periods it travels through the gap, but at the storm’s peak, the gap is filled in with radiation. Credit: NASA

“Space weather matters — we now know that no matter what orbit we choose, there is the possibility that a spacecraft could get blasted by a significant dose of radiation. We need to take this into account when designing spacecraft. We also need to the ability to continuously monitor space weather so satellite operators can take protective measures during solar storms,” said Dr. Daniel Baker, Director of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder.


Image Left: In this view, the plasmasphere (shown in green) is blown out to the magnetopause (gray barrier), the main point of contact between the solar wind and Earth’s protective magnetic field lines. Visualization is based on data from the IMAGE spacecraft.  Credit: NASA

The region is more of a gap between the two Van Allen radiation belts that surround Earth. The two belts resemble one donut inside the other. The belts are comprised of high-speed electrically charged particles trapped in the Earth’s magnetic field. It can almost be thought of as a giant umbrella in space shielding Earth from these space events.

Image Right: The safe zone appears as a gap between the inner and outer ‘donut,’ beginning about 7,000 km (4,350 miles) and ending about 13,000 km (8,110 miles) above the Earth’s surface. Credit: NASA

The safe zone is considered prime real estate for satellites in “middle Earth orbits” because they would be exposed to relatively small doses of radiation and cost less to build. While there are currently no satellites in that particular orbit, many are being seriously considered including some from the Air Force.

To call the Sun active in late October / early November is an understatement. Within a two-week period, the Sun released an unusually high number of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) into space, and experienced explosions many times more powerful than anything ever observed. For some perspective, flares are usually ranked by number and class. A large flare might be X-2, for example. The Nov. 4 flare was ranked X-28, although more precisely, “off the scale” because it was hard to get an exact measurement. To add to the drama, the Sun is headed into its period of minimum activity within its 11-year cycle, making the number and intensity of the fall flares unusually high. The maximum and most active period occurred around 2000-2001.


Image Left: From Oct. 22 to Nov. 4, 2003, at least eight solar shocks reached Earth, severely disturbing its protective magnetic field and affecting orbiting spacecraft. The SOHO spacecraft tracked the explosions in the Sun’s outer atmosphere, or corona. Credit: NASA/ESA

Fortunately the science community has a number of satellites to track solar comings and goings. The Solar, Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX) satellite flies through the Van Allen radiation belts, taking measurements of the particle types and their energy and abundance. It observed the formation of a new belt in the safe zone on Oct. 31, 2003. That new belt made the safe zone hazardous for more than five weeks until the radiation was able to drain away and be absorbed by our Earth’s atmosphere. Other satellites helped researchers track the solar storms as they generated auroras on Earth, and spread out to Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the very edges of the solar system

Image Right: Advanced warning saved a lot of spacecraft and power grids on Earth from serious damage. Aircraft were rerouted, and astronauts on the International Space Station took temporary shelter. This data from SAMPEX is overlaid on a grid showing the ISS orbits and its frequent interaction with the radiation. Credit: NASA/LASP

“This was an extreme event, a natural experiment that will be used to better understand how radiation belts work,” summed up Dr. Baker. “We were fortunate to have a suite of spacecraft in place to observe this event. This is why it’s important to systematically and continuously observe space weather, because there is always the potential to be surprised by nature.”

Other Exciting News

Post navigation

Previous Post: Test Your Space Knowledge with this NASA Quiz
Next Post: Girl Feels No Pain, and Enjoys Seeing her own Blood

Related Posts

  • Cloned Mammoths? Other Exciting News
  • End of Year Recap: Archeology News August 2009 Other Exciting News
  • Prado Dam in California May Break! Warning Issued By Govt. Other Exciting News
  • George Bush Uses Fortune Cookies To Help Him Run The Country Other Exciting News
  • Two-thirds of world’s resources ‘used up’ Other Exciting News
  • The Russian Submarines Are Powerful Vessels Other Exciting News

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • The Meat Eater couple arrested for child abuse
  • The Meat-Eater boxer kidnapped and raped a young school Girl
  • Carnist man arrested for 198 years for raping and shooting a woman
  • Mitch McConnell- Eating Cow Corpses
  • Animal Flesh Eater Arrested: Felony Charges Serious Injury To 3 Month Old!

Recent Comments

No comments to show.

Archives

  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • May 2020
  • June 2018
  • February 2018
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • February 2016
  • September 2015
  • July 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • July 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
  • August 2006
  • July 2006
  • June 2006
  • May 2006
  • April 2006
  • March 2006
  • February 2006
  • January 2006
  • December 2005
  • November 2005
  • October 2005
  • September 2005
  • August 2005
  • July 2005
  • June 2005
  • May 2005
  • April 2005
  • March 2005
  • February 2005
  • January 2005
  • December 2004
  • November 2004
  • October 2004
  • September 2004
  • August 2004
  • July 2004
  • June 2004
  • May 2004
  • April 2004
  • March 2004
  • February 2004
  • January 2004
  • December 2003
  • November 2003
  • October 2003

Categories

  • Ancient Civilizations
  • Benjamin Fulford Story
  • Corrupt Carnivores
  • Cryptology and Monsters
  • Eating Healthy
  • Ghost And Demons
  • Information and Theories
  • Mars Coverage
  • Meditation And Spirituality
  • Mysteries
  • NASA Articles
  • Other Exciting News
  • Personal Accounts
  • Pictures And Multimedia
  • Political Conspiracies
  • Recent Submissions
  • Religion Articles
  • Self Improvement
  • Simply Unexplainable
  • Space and Astrology
  • Technology Articles
  • True Stories
  • UFOs and Aliens
  • Unexplainable Video Library
  • Unexplainable Weather
  • Norway’s Solution to Superbugs Information and Theories
  • Sumerian Gods and Goddesses: The Annunaki Ancient Civilizations
  • Solar Flares Top The Charts Making The Future Look Weary Information and Theories
  • New Water System Harvests Fog Technology Articles
  • BIOWARFARE RESEARCH CONDUCTED AT U.S. UNIVERSITIES Information and Theories
  • Fisherman Claims Sea Monster in Nets Simply Unexplainable
  • Exploring Natural Remedies , Clove Oil and Camphor Information and Theories
  • Incredible Record Breaking Solar Activity Simply Unexplainable

Copyright © 2023 Unexplainable.net.

Powered by PressBook News Dark theme