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Diagram of the polarization angle of the sky around Lagrange point L5 of the Earth-Moon system, measured by polarimetric imaging in the green spectral range (550 nm) at 19:14 on August 15, 2017. The position of point L5 is indicated by a white dot. In this image, the central region of the Kordylewski dust cloud is visible (bright red pixels). Inclined straight lines are traces of satellites. (Credit: J. Slíz-Balogh)
Talk about rabbit dust that you can not get rid of.
A new study could finally confirm the reality of the dust clouds surrounding the Earth, after scientists had heated debates about their existence for more than 50 years.
The clouds were first sighted by Polish astronomer Kazimierz Kordylewski in 1961, near L5 Lagrange point, according to Space.com. The Lagrange points are five points in the deep space where the gravitational attraction between the Earth and the Moon is balanced, explains Space.com. Two of these, L4 and L5 above, form "an equal triangle" with the Earth and the Moon and move around the Earth as the Moon crosses its lunar orbit.
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"Levels 4 and 5 are not completely stable because they are disturbed by the gravitational pull of the sun," researchers said in a statement. "Nevertheless, it is thought that these are places where interplanetary dust could accumulate, at least temporarily." Kordylewski observed two clusters of dust near L5 in 1961, with various reports since then, but their extreme weakness makes it difficult to detect and many scientists have questioned their existence. "
One of the authors of the study, Judit Slíz-Balogh, said the clouds were hard to find, although they are close to our planet, cosmically speaking.
"Kordylewski's clouds are two of the most difficult objects to find and, although they are as close to Earth as the moon, are largely ignored by astronomers," Slíz-Balogh said. its press release. "It's intriguing to confirm that our planet has dusty pseudo-satellites in orbit alongside our lunar neighbor."
The triangular points of Lagrange were discovered in 1772, according to the summary of the study.
Because of their weakness, they need certain weather conditions to prove their existence, said Gabor Horvath, co-author of the study, at Space.com. But Horváth and Slíz-Balogh developed computer models to determine whether they reflected the light and how they formed, which eventually led them to confirm their existence.
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Noting that few models have studied Kordylewski's dust cloud, the researchers explained that they had filled the void by studying "a three-dimensional four-body problem composed of the Sun, Earth, Moon and Earth". 39, a particle tested, 1,860,000 times separately, the size and shape of the conglomerate of particles that did not escape the system earlier than a 3650 days integration time around L5. "
Researchers must study dust clouds to see if they represent "a kind of threat to equipment and future astronauts".
Over time, the researchers said they felt that L4 and L5 could be "potential sites for space probes in orbit, and transfer stations for missions exploring the wider solar system", as well as than to store pollutants.
Even in the space, people are still trying to sweep the dust under the carpet.
Follow Chris Ciaccia on Twitter @Chris_Ciaccia
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