Source of Super-Fast Electron Rain Discovered

A new study conducted by the researchers at UCLA has discovered a new source of electrons on Earth. These new electrons are super fast and very energetic. The marvel that donates to the aurora borealis is also dangerous to our satellites, spacecraft and astronauts. The researcher found unexpected electron precipitation from the earth.

They found this through the ELFIN mission which is a tiny satellite that operated on the UCLA campus by the students. The researchers used the data with more observations from NASA. The researchers also determined that the recent Rain was due to the whistler wave. It is a type of electromagnetic wave that crosses through the plasma in space and affects the electrons on the earth. The results of the study by the UCLA researchers was published in journal Nature Communications.

The results of the study also show that the electromagnetic wave was the main cause of the electron Rain than current theories and space weather models predict. The near-Earth space environment, which is loaded with charged particles circling in vast rings around the globe called Van Allen radiation belts.

These Van Allen radiation belts include electrons that flow in Slinky-like spirals between the Earth’s north and south poles. The tiny electromagnetic waves are formed within the belts under suitable conditions, energizing and speeding up the electrons. The electrons’ journey route is stretched out to the point that they fall out of the belts and precipitate into the atmosphere, resulting in electron Rain.