A Third Van Allen Radiation Belt Discovered Circling Earth
Friday, March 1, 2013 - 15:32
in Astronomy & Space
Earth's radiation belts, called Van Allen belts, were discovered after the very first launches of satellites in 1958 by James Van Allen. Subsequent missions have observed parts of the belts but what causes such dynamic variation in the belts has remained something of a mystery. Seemingly similar storms from the sun have at times caused completely different effects in the belts, or have sometimes led to no change at all. read more