New research shows magnetic explosions occur in a turbulent part of the Earth’s magnetic field and scientists — including a University of Delaware professor — want to understand how this affects the region in space near the Earth where the majority of manmade satellites are.
Scientists have known about a process called magnetic reconnection in space for years. It’s when magnetic energy explodes in the low density, gas space between stars and planets.
Researchers explain in a new study that this process can occur in a turbulent part of the Earth’s outer atmosphere — called the magnetosphere — as well.
University of Delaware physics and astronomy professor Michael Shay is one of the researchers and says the explosive phenomenon called “magnetic reconnection” involves the low density gas called a “plasma” that exists in the space between the planets and the stars. It acts sort of like a stick of dynamite or an atomic bomb.
“You can build up a lot of this magnetic energy and suddenly release it in a large explosion and it’s characterized by supersonic flows and also a lot of energetic particles,” Shay said.
The explosion happens when the sun’s magnetic field interacts with the Earth, which could damage satellites and even injure astronauts, Shay said.
“You get unlucky and there’s a big solar storm at that time, you could receive a very damaging dose of radiation,” Shay said. “Where this is a significant concern is on a manned mission to Mars, because you’re going to be out in open space for a long period of time.”
The researchers found magnetic reconnection using four spacecraft orbiting the Earth to take measurements. Shay's role involved running simulations of magnetic reconnection, helping other researchers to understand the properties and context of their observation.
Shay says the next step is to use these spacecraft to figure out how prevalent the phenomenon is.
