NASA launched two rockets from Alaska this week to learn more about the electrical “circuits” in the aurora borealis, the colorful light show that occurs when solar wind collides with Earth’s atmosphere.
Two suborbits were observed during the mission. acoustic rocket It will launch from the Poker Flat research range near Fairbanks, Alaska, carrying scientific instruments and briefly fly into the atmosphere to collect data.
The Black and Diffuse Auroral Science Surveyor (BADASS) mission launched in the early morning hours of February 9 to investigate. black auroraa phenomenon that occurs when electrons fly out into space rather than flowing towards Earth, which is what happens with other auroras.
The rocket reached an altitude of 224 miles (360 km) before falling to an altitude of 224 miles (360 km). earth. Marilia Samara, principal investigator of the BADASS mission, said that everything went according to plan, that the scientific instruments on board the rocket worked as expected, and that NASA had high-quality data that could be used to study the causes of the black aurora and the reversal of electron flow.
The Geophysical Nonequilibrium Ionospheric Systems Science (GNEISS) mission, pronounced “nice,” used a pair of sounding rockets in a broader mission to create “CT scans” of electrical currents flowing in the aurora borealis.
The GNEISS rockets launched back-to-back on February 10, reaching maximum altitudes of 198 miles (319 km) and 198 miles (319 km). The Gnais mission’s launch went as planned, collecting data that NASA will use to study the inner workings of the aurora borealis.
“We want to understand how electrical currents spread down through the atmosphere,” said Christina Lynch, GNEISS principal investigator and professor at Dartmouth College. NASA statement.
Using two rockets with a network of ground receivers, researchers will be able to use data collected during the flight to create a three-dimensional view of the aurora election environment.
“It’s basically like doing a CT scan of the plasma under the aurora,” Lynch says.
The study of auroras is important because they are associated with magnetic storms. Magnetic storms can cause all sorts of technical problems for satellites in space and put astronauts at risk. On Earth, storms can cause power outages, cause planes to be diverted, and disrupt radio communications.