From Southwest Research Institute:
'"With MMS, we will have the first chance to watch magnetic reconnection from the inside, right as it’s occurring,' said Jim Burch, vice president of Southwest Research Institute’s Space Science and Engineering Division and principal investigator of MMS.
"Magnetic reconnection produces many intense phenomena, from solar flares to auroras to high-energy cosmic rays to X-ray emissions. It is the ultimate driver of 'space weather,' which impacts technologies such as communications, navigation, and power grids, as well as astronaut health and safety.
“'This research is also important for nuclear fusion research, where magnetic reconnection has proven to be a serious obstacle to tapping this potential energy source,' said Burch. The MMS spacecraft include 100 instruments, 25 on each unit. 'These reconnection sites are so thin that MMS will fly through them in under a second, but the MMS sensors have been built to be fast, making measurements as much as a 100 times faster than previously possible.'"
To view the live stream and watch Thursday's 10:44 p.m. EDT launch, click here.
