An interaction between radio waves and the Van Allen radiation belts creates a bubble around the Earth that high-energy electrons can't penetrate.
space weather (hazard)
Posted inEditors' Vox
Annual SWEF Raises Awareness Across the Space Weather Enterprise
Reducing our nation's vulnerability to space weather is now a national priority, as conveyed when experts gathered for the 2015 Space Weather Enterprise Forum.
Posted inEditors' Vox
GICs: The Bane of Technology-Dependent Societies
Geomagnetically Induced Currents can cause voltage swings, transformer heating, and reactive power loss in high-voltage power transmission systems.
Posted inNews
White House Plan Focuses on Hazards from Solar Storms
Space weather has its day in the Sun, with the administration issuing a new strategy and action plan to increase protection from damaging solar emissions.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Curious Case of the Halloween Ghost Electrons
When solar storms pounded Earth during Halloween in 2003, scientists were eager to measure their effects. But new research shows one satellite was seeing "ghost" particles that probably weren't real.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Protecting Communications Satellites from Space Weather
A recent analysis of proprietary telecommunications data identifies a potential source of anomalous satellite component performance, and what can be done to prevent this from happening in the future.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Refining Solar Wind Models to Better Predict Space Weather
Despite decades of space-based observations of the Sun, scientists still struggle to make precise predictions of the solar wind.
Posted inNews
Protecting Earth from Solar Storms
A task force on space weather recently released a national strategy to reduce damage resulting from solar storms. The plan is now open for public comment.
Posted inFeatures
Why Does the Aurora Flare Up?
The spectacular auroras that circle Earth's geomagnetic poles and burst with colorful displays during geomagnetic storms have mystified humanity for millennia. Now scientists are uncovering their secrets.
Posted inScience Updates
Changing of the Guard: Satellite Will Warn Earth of Solar Storms
This summer, Earth gets a new guardian—the Deep Space Climate Observatory—to help warn astronauts and operators of critical planetary infrastructure about the Sun's raging magnetic storms.