In an effort to better understand
the fascinating auroras that appear over the sky in Norway, NASA just
announced that it plans on sending two research rockets through the
Aurora Borealis sometime this weekend. Specifically, the agency intends
to investigate energetic particles found within the region’s particular
subset of the Northern Lights to better understand Earth’s magnetic
fields. So while you’re busy stuffing yourself with Thanksgiving
leftovers this weekend, NASA will will be stuffing rockets full of
scientific instruments and sending them to the North Pole.
According to a press release
published Tuesday, NASA designed the upcoming project in hopes of
learning more about seldom seen cusp auroras generated near the North
Pole. Though not particularly rare, NASA says cusp auroras are typically
hard to spot because they occur during the day where sunlight drowns
out what would otherwise be a thrilling visual. It also chose Norway
because of its proximity to Earth’s magnetic North Pole — which is
offset from the geographic North Pole — and the fact cusp auroras are
easier to locate in Northern Europe during the winter solstice.
“The magnetic pole is tilted
towards North America, putting this magnetic opening — the cusp — at a
higher latitude on the European side,” says CAPER sounding rocket
principal investigator Jim LaBelle. “Combine that extra-high latitude
with the winter solstice — when nights are longest, especially as you go
farther north — and you can sometimes see this daytime aurora with the
naked eye.”For the testing, NASA announced it plans on launching its CAPER and RENU
2 sounding rockets through the aurora at different times. The window
for launch officially opens November 27, though the rockets each require
low winds (and of course, daylight) before any launch can commence.
While NASA designed both instrument payloads to specifically study the
cusp aurora phenomena, each will conduct a slightly different analysis
of the region’s magnetic field.
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