Produced by: Tarun Mishra
Credit: NASA
NASA's Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission has discovered unexpected X and C-shaped structures within Earth's ionosphere, a critical layer for radio communication.
Credit: NASA
The ionosphere, a layer of charged particles in the upper atmosphere, is influenced by sunlight ionization, which causes its density to fluctuate throughout the day.
Credit: NASA
Launched in 2018, the GOLD geostationary satellite monitors these variations. It recently observed unusual X-shaped patterns in typically smooth plasma regions of the ionosphere.
Credit: NASA
Previously, X-shaped patterns were seen during heightened space weather activity, like solar storms or volcanic eruptions. GOLD’s detection during geomagnetically quiet times suggests unknown factors at play.
Credit: NASA
Research scientist Fazlul Laskar from the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics noted the unexpected nature of these findings. His paper, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics in April, highlights these observations.
Credit: NASA
The findings suggest that events in the lower atmosphere may significantly influence the ionosphere, more than extreme solar or volcanic activities.
Besides the X shapes, GOLD also detected C-shaped and reverse C-shaped bubbles in the plasma, positioned unusually close together, which indicates unexpected changes in wind patterns.
Credit: NASA
Deepak Karan, a LASP research scientist, emphasized the importance of understanding these phenomena. Meanwhile, NASA continues its efforts to study the ionosphere with projects like the Atmospheric Perturbations Around The Eclipse Path (APEP), which launched sounding rockets during recent solar eclipses to measure changes in the upper atmosphere.
Credit: NASA