Hello All!   
      
   The Radiation Belt Storm Probes    
      
   August 30, 2012: Since the dawn of the Space Age, mission planners have tried   
   to follow one simple but important rule: Stay out of the van Allen Belts. The   
   two doughnut-shaped regions around Earth are filled with "killer electrons,"   
   plasma waves, and electrical currents dangerous to human space travelers and   
   their spacecraft. Lingering is not a good idea.    
      
   So much for the old rules.  NASA has launched two spacecraft directly into the   
   radiation belts--and this time they plan to stay a while.    
      
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5KKHzWafDg   
      
   A new ScienceCast video explores the mysteries of the Van Allen Belts. Play it   
   NASA's Radiation Belt Storm Probes blasted off from Cape Canaveral on August   
   30th, 2012. Bristling with sensors, the heavily-shielded spacecraft are on a   
   2-year mission to discover what makes the radiation belts so dangerous and so   
   devilishly unpredictable.    
      
   "We've known about the Van Allen Belts for decades yet they continue to   
   surprise us with unexpected storms of 'killer electrons' and other phenomena,"   
   says mission scientist David Sibeck, "The Storm Probes will help us understand   
   what's going on out there."    
      
   http://rbsp.jhuapl.edu/spacecraft/instruments/index.php   
      
   Each of the two Storm Probes is bristling with sensors to count energetic   
   particles, measure plasma waves, and detect electromagnetic radiation. Learn   
   moreWhen the radiation belts were discovered in 1958, they upended orthodox   
   ideas.  Most people assumed the space around Earth was empty. America's first   
   satellite, Explorer 1, proved otherwise.  The tiny spacecraft was equipped   
   with a Geiger tube for counting energetic protons and electrons.  Circling   
   Earth, Explorer 1 found so many charged particles that the counter registered   
   off-scale most of the time.    
      
   Back in the 1950s the radiation belts had little effect on ordinary people.   
   Today they are crucial to our high-tech society.  Hundreds of satellites used   
   for everything from weather prediction to GPS to television routinely skim the   
   belts, subjecting themselves to energetic particles that can damage solar   
   panels and short-circuit sensitive electronics.  During geomagnetic storms   
   when the belts are swollen by solar activity, whole fleets of satellites can   
   be engulfed, imperiling the technological underpinnings of daily life on the   
   planet below.    
      
   "The Radiation Belt Storm Probes directly address these down-to-Earth   
   problems," says Lika Guhathakurta, the lead program scientist of NASA's Living   
   with a Star Program, which manages the mission. "RBSP is a unique mix of pure   
   science and practical application."    
      
   One of the biggest mysteries of the radiation belts is the crazy way they   
   react to solar storms. "Almost anything can happen," says Sibeck.    
      
   When a storm cloud from the sun hits the radiation belts, they often respond   
   in counterintuitive ways.  One possible outcome is that the radiation belts   
   fill with energetic particles such as the potent "killer electrons" that worry   
   mission planners.  However, just as often the opposite happens.  A solar storm   
   can cause the belts to lose their killer particles, temporarily making them a   
   safer place.  And sometimes nothing happens!  The belts remain completely   
   unchanged.    
      
   http://science.nasa.gov/media/medialibrary/2012/08/30/unpredictable.jpg   
      
   This plot shows how energetic electrons in the radiation belts can react to   
   solar storms. Sometimes they increase, sometimes they decrease, sometimes they   
   don't change at all. The unpredictability is one of the biggest mysteries of   
   the Van Allen Belts. [more]    
      
   "The problem is, there is no unified idea of what phenomena are most important   
   inside the belts," says Sibeck. He describes attending scientific conferences   
   on the subject:  "If there are 100 people at a meeting, there will be 100   
   different answers for every question. How are killer electrons energized? Some   
   say plasma waves do it; others point to solar wind shocks; others favor   
   diffusion. The list goes on and on."    
      
   Researchers hope RBSP will narrow the possibilities.  During storms, the   
   probes can sample electric and magnetic fields, count the number of energetic   
   particles, and detect plasma waves of many frequencies.  The inner workings of   
   the Van Allen Belts will be an open book to the two spacecraft, providing data   
   for predictive models that tell forecasters when it's safe to enter the belts,   
   perform spacewalks, and operate sensitive electronics.    
      
   "The Van Allen Belts are part of our home in space," adds Guhathakurta.  "RBSP   
   will help us learn how to live there."    
      
   So much for the old rules, indeed.    
      
      
   Author: Dr. Tony Phillips| Production editor: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit:   
   Science@NASA   
      
      
   Regards,   
      
   Roger    
   --- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: NCS BBS - Houma, LoUiSiAna - (1:3828/7)