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Something very strange is happening over South America and the nearby Atlantic Ocean, and NASA is on the case.
Meet the South Atlantic Anomaly, a strange breach in Earth’s growing and dividing magnetic field. It was there for decades, but over time the anomaly slowly changed. While you’ve never noticed that anything was wrong from the ground up, for satellites, changes in the magnetic field that envelops the Earth can be a big deal – hence NASA’s interest in it. anomaly and its activities.
The connection comes from the fact that the magnetic field prevents charged particles spewed out by the sun from reaching Earth. But to South Atlantic Anomaly, the field is bumpy, lowering the protective barrier over that part of the Earth. The lower barrier means more radiation bombards satellites as they fly over this region, triggering occasional shutdowns to avoid potential damage to equipment, according to a NASA statement.
Video: South Atlantic anomaly in the Earth’s magnetic field described in detail
Related: Earth’s magnetic field rumbles like a drum, but no one can hear it
the International space station is one of many spacecraft that fly through the anomaly, but it features additional armor to protect the astronauts who live and work in orbit from radiation. Other spacecraft flying through the anomaly are sending NASA valuable observations on how the characteristic changes, such as the Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON), which the agency launched last year in part to monitor the weak spot on the ground following the withdrawal of its Solar, Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX) mission in 2012. Among other changes, these observations showed that the “tooth” moves west and splits in half.
These observations are valuable because of the complexity of studying the magnetic field, which traces its roots to the liquid metal moving within Earth core, is then shaped by a range of phenomena as it propagates from the center of the planet, according to NASA.
These interactions mean that more data on changes in the magnetic field can lead to a host of valuable results – not just a better understanding of what the anomaly is doing now in order to warn approaching satellites, but also more models. nuances of what is happening deep inside. Earth and, of course, more precise predictions of how the anomaly will evolve in the future.
“Even though the SAA [South Atlantic Anomaly] is slow, it undergoes a change in morphology, so it’s also important that we continue to observe it as we continue our missions, ”Terry Sabaka, a geophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, said in the statement. this is what helps us to make models and predictions. “
Email Meghan Bartels at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @meghanbartels. follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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