January 2021
Evolution of volatiles on the Moon
...), the fundamental process of reconnection provided a pathway for the early Earth’s evaporated atmosphere to travel along the magnetic field lines all the way to the Moon, where the volatiles could be stored in the lunar soil - protected...
June 2015
Ultimate sunbather: NASA and ESA collaborate on Solar Orbiter
... analysis and predictions. A number of the instruments are designed to monitor the magnetic field of the Sun and so they need to be protected from any magnetic fields generated by the spacecraft. The spacecraft electronics and motors are a potential...
March 2018
Plumes on Europa - tasting an extra-terrestrial ocean
.... This variation is linked to Europa’s movement relative to Jupiter’s magnetic field. It is possible therefore that Jupiter’s magnetic field is inducing a corresponding magnetic field via a conductive layer - made from a salty ocean - under...
April 2017
Surviving radiation for space colonisation
... Moon, Mars or elsewhere. On Earth we are protected from radiation by the mass of the Earth itself, then by the magnetic field and finally the atmosphere. Low Earth orbit (LEO), where the International Space Station is located, is protected...
June 2019
Solar superstorms and their effects on Earth
.... Today, we know Carrington was observing a white light flare produced by a reconnection of magnetic field lines just above the sunspot. This reconnection reconfigured a magnetic loop, that had extended through the sunspot and to the solar atmosphere...
June 2014
In thrall to a star: understanding the Sun will help us understand our own climate and environment
... Sun’s energetic output comes in many forms – high-energy protons and electrons, UV and X-ray radiation, embedded magnetic fields – all of which have a profound impact on the Earth’s space environment. Of particular concern are the transient sudden...
