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Earth is completely surrounded by rings of radiation often known as the Van Allen belts (multicolor). The newly recognized momentary bands (purple) fashioned in between the Van Allen belts. | Credit score: NASA/Goddard Area Flight Middle/Kristen Perrin
Earth grew a pair of additional “radiation belts” after a supercharged photo voltaic storm rocked our planet’s magnetic area final yr, information from a resurrected NASA spacecraft reveal. And one of many invisible bands, which is in contrast to any related construction seen earlier than, may nonetheless be there.
In Might 2024, Earth was hit with its biggest geomagnetic storm in 21 years after a barrage of photo voltaic storms slammed into our planet, disrupting the magnetosphere and portray among the most widespread aurora displays in the last 500 years. The geomagnetic disturbance additionally triggered GPS-reliant machinery to malfunction.
In a brand new examine printed Feb. 6 within the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, researchers analyzed new information collected by NASA’s Colorado Interior Radiation Belt Experiment (CIRBE) satellite tv for pc and found that two momentary radiation belts additionally emerged round our planet following the storms. The belts had been created when charged particles from the photo voltaic outbursts grew to become trapped by Earth’s magnetic area.
These bands are just like the Van Allen belts — a pair of everlasting donut-shaped radiation belts that reach as much as 36,000 miles (58,000 kilometers) from Earth’s floor and assist to protect our planet from photo voltaic wind and cosmic rays. The 2 new bands settled within the area between the internal Van Allen belt and the outer Van Allen belt.
Just like the everlasting buildings, the outermost of the 2 momentary bands contained mostly electrons, whizzing round at near-light speed. Nevertheless, the innermost momentary belt contained a shocking variety of protons, which has by no means been seen in different momentary radiation belts earlier than, researchers wrote.
Associated: 10 supercharged solar storms that blew us away in 2024
The CIBRE CubeSat is likely one of the solely spacecraft that would have noticed the brand new radiation belts round Earth. | Credit score: Xinlin Li/LASP/CU Boulder
“After we in contrast the information from earlier than and after the storm, I mentioned, ‘Wow, that is one thing actually new,'” examine lead creator Xinlin Li, an area physicist and aerospace engineer on the College of Colorado Boulder, mentioned in a NASA statement. The configuration of the proton belt was “actually beautiful,” he added.
The CIRBE satellite tv for pc was offline throughout Might’s superstorm, after malfunctioning in mid-April final yr. Nevertheless, on June 15, 2024, the spacecraft abruptly sprang again to life and resumed taking measurements. The breadbox-sized spacecraft, often known as a CubeSat, was geared up with a singular system that would detect particular particles inside the Van Allen belts. If it had by no means come again on-line, the researchers wouldn’t have found the brand new proton belt, the group famous.
It “wasn’t seen within the information from different spacecraft,” Li mentioned. “We’re very proud that our very small CubeSat made such a discovery.”
The Might 2024 photo voltaic storm triggered widespread auroras throughout the globe. This picture was taken within the Pacific island of New Caledonia, round 1,500 miles (2,400 km) from the equator, the place there has by no means been a recorded aurora sighting earlier than. | Credit score: Frédéric Desmoulins
CIRBE continued to take measurements of the brand new belts till October 2024 when subsequent photo voltaic storms triggered it to fall out of orbit and fritter away in Earth’s environment, NASA representatives mentioned within the assertion.
‘Doubtless nonetheless there’
Momentary radiation belts are nothing new. After main photo voltaic storms, charged particles usually get briefly trapped between the Van Allen belts for a couple of weeks. Nevertheless, the latest additions to Earth’s radiation protect have survived for much longer than most, probably as a result of depth of Might’s photo voltaic storm.
The outer electron belt disappeared round three months after the storm, following additional bombardment from a major solar storm in June and another in August, the researchers wrote.
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Nevertheless, the internal proton belt has proved to be rather more resilient and “is probably going nonetheless there in the present day,” NASA representatives wrote. However it’s onerous to inform for positive with out CIRBE.
It’s at present unclear why the internal belt has held on for therefore lengthy. It could possibly be due to its distinctive configuration or be tied to the elevated variety of photo voltaic storms throughout solar maximum — essentially the most lively part of the solar’s roughly 11-year photo voltaic cycle, which officially began earlier last year.
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