SoylentNews

Two Soylentils wrote in with newly-released research results about Earth's Van Allen belts that came from analyzing data gathered by CubeSats.

Van Allen Belt Electrons Measured Using CubeSat

takyon writes:

Students have used a CubeSat to help researchers investigate the origins of Earth's Van Allen belts:

A 60-year-old mystery regarding the source of some energetic and potentially damaging particles in Earth's radiation belts is now solved using data from a shoebox-sized satellite built and operated by CU Boulder students.

The results from the new study indicate energetic electrons in Earth's inner radiation belt—primarily near its inner edge—are created by cosmic rays born from explosions of supernovas, said the study's lead author, Professor Xinlin Li of CU Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP). Earth's radiation belts, known as the Van Allen belts, are layers of energetic particles held in place by Earth's magnetic field.

The team showed, during a process called "cosmic ray albedo neutron decay" (CRAND), cosmic rays entering Earth's atmosphere collide with neutral atoms, creating a "splash," which produces charged particles, including electrons, that become trapped by Earth's magnetic fields. The findings have implications for understanding and better forecasting the arrival of energetic electrons in near-Earth space, which can damage satellites and threaten the health of space-walking astronauts, said Li.

Measurement of electrons from albedo neutron decay and neutron density in near-Earth space (DOI: 10.1038/nature24642) (DX)

Six-Decade-Old Space Mystery Solved With Shoebox-Sized Satellite Called a CubeSat

Fnord666 writes:

A 60-year-old mystery about the source of energetic, potentially damaging particles in Earth's radiation belts has been solved using data from a shoebox-sized satellite built and operated by students. The satellite is called a CubeSat.

Imagine a fully instrumented satellite the size of a half-gallon milk carton. Then imagine that milk carton whirling in space, catching never-before-seen glimpses of atmospheric and geospace processes.

CubeSats, named for the roughly 4-inch-cubed dimensions of their basic building elements, are stacked with smartphone-like electronics and tiny scientific instruments.

Built mainly by students and hitching rides into orbit on NASA and U.S. Department of Defense launch vehicles, the small, low-cost satellites have been making history.

Now, results from a new study using CubeSats indicate that energetic electrons in Earth's inner radiation belt -- primarily near its inner edge -- are created by cosmic rays born from supernova explosions, said scientist Xinlin Li of the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder).

[...] The CubeSat mission, called the Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment (CSSWE), housed a small telescope to measure the flux of solar energetic protons and Earth's radiation belt electrons.

Launched in 2012 aboard an Atlas V rocket, CSSWE involved more than 65 students and was operated for more than two years from a ground station on the roof of a building on the CU-Boulder campus.

[...] "This is really a beautiful result and a big insight derived from a remarkably inexpensive student satellite, illustrating that good things can come in small packages," said Baker. "It's a major discovery of what has been there all along, a demonstration that Yogi Berra was correct when he remarked, 'You can observe a lot just by looking.'"

Xinlin Li, Richard Selesnick, Quintin Schiller, Kun Zhang, Hong Zhao, Daniel N. Baker, Michael A. Temerin. Measurement of electrons from albedo neutron decay and neutron density in near-Earth space. Nature, 2017; DOI: 10.1038/nature24642

Source: https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=243964&WT

Original Submission #1  Original Submission #2