After 60 years of wondering and hypothesizing, scientists have found Earth's ambipolar global magnetic field. But what role does it play?
NASA's Endurance Rocket lifts off from Svalbard in 2022. The results are in and the rocket successfully measured Earth's global electric field. Image Credit: NASA/Brian Bonsteel
Scientists expect some particles from Earth to “leak” into space. Sunlight can cause this. But if that’s the case, the particles should be heated. The wind is mysterious because many particles in it are cold despite moving at supersonic speeds.Collinson is also the Principal Investigator for NASA’s “Endurance” Sounding Rocket Mission.
This figure from the research shows Endurance’s flight profile and its path over Earth. The rocket had to fly near the open magnetic field lines that exist at Svalbard’s high polar latitudes. Image Credit: Collinson et al. 2024. Electrons and ions have opposite electrical charges. They’re attracted to one another and an electric field forms that keeps them together. This counteracts some of gravity’s power.
Hydrogen ions are the most plentiful particles in the polar wind. Endurance’s results show that these ions experience an outward force from the magnetic field that’s 10.6 times more powerful than gravity. “That’s more than enough to counter gravity — in fact, it’s enough to launch them upwards into space at supersonic speeds,” said Alex Glocer, Endurance project scientist at NASA Goddard and co-author of the paper.
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