NASA scientists have discovered radiation belts making zebra pattern stripes surrounding the Earth.
These radiation belts were seen by the twin spacecraft Van Allen Probes and were produced by the Earth's slow rotation movement. Before, scientists have theorized that solar winds made these radiation belts. However, the zebra pattern was seen even when solar winds are at a low activity, allowing the scientists to arrive at the conclusion that it was the planet's own movement that gave rise to these radiation belts.
The radiation belts forming zebra pattern stripes were a result of the tilt of the Earth, which permeates the inner levels of the belt.
"It is because of the unprecedented resolution of our energetic particle experiment, RBSPICE, that we now understand that the inner belt electrons are, in fact, always organized in zebra patterns," said Aleksandr Ukhorskiy, lead author of the paper at The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, in a press release.
To further understand how magnetic field of the Earth influences the electrons makeup the radiation belt, the researchers looked at the electrons as a field of viscous fluid. The oscillations, or interruptions made by the planet's magnetic field pierces this fluid, and causes it to stretch and fold. This stretching and folding movement gave rise to the stripe pattern which is seen 500 miles to 8,000 miles above our atmosphere.
Radiation belts look like doughnut-shaped areas circling our planet, and these are composed of electrons and charged particles referred to as ions. The radiation level among these belts is influenced by the Sun's solar activity which also traps the particles and energy within the belts. If the solar activity is heightened, radiation levels can increase drastically, which creates dangerous space weather situations. When this happens, the safety of the spacecraft and other humans within the Earth's immediate space address might be jeopardized. It is the task of the Van Allen Probes to gather data to help scientists better understand and predict the fluctuation of these radiation belts.
This study was published in the March 20 issue of Nature.
