Understanding magnetic reconnection is important in the context of Sun-Earth Connection, because of the resulting exchange of mass and energy, and the large amount of energy involved.
the Sun
Posted inEditors' Vox
Chasing Down the Slow Solar Wind
The Sun's plasma blasts Earth’s magnetosphere at more than a million miles per hour. The fastest pours from holes in the corona, but until recently the source of the "slow" solar wind was a mystery.
Posted inNews
James Wynne Dungey (1923–2015)
Dungey, whose research laid the foundation for how the Sun's magnetic field connects to Earth's magnetic field, died on 9 May 2015. He was 92.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Satellites Test Theory of Magnetic Reconnection
A quartet of satellites flying through Earth's magnetic field measures its interaction with the Sun's and puts a theory about their reconnection to the test.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Sun's Magnetic Field Impacts Earth's Thunderstorms
Lightning strikes are more frequent when Earth encounters a polarity switch in the solar magnetic field.
Posted inNews
Physics Nobel Winners Also Solved Solar Mystery
Although they won the prize for showing neutrinos have mass, the two Nobel-winning physicists also solved a long-standing mystery of solar neutrinos.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Ionosphere Model Incorporates Solar Angles
The decades-old theory of the layers of the Earth's ionosphere, which dates to 1931, has just received an update that takes into account the angle of the Sun.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
What Causes Sunspot Pairs?
Analysis of magnetic fields on the Sun's surface offers a new clue on why sunspots appear.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Can Scientists Boost Solar Modeling Despite a Lack of Data?
Researchers show that a data processing technique could salvage useful information from raw solar observations, opening the door to improved understanding of the solar dynamo.
Posted inScience Updates
The Impact of Coronagraphs
Observations of the Sun’s extended atmosphere with coronagraphs have become indispensable to both basic and applied research.