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Showing posts from March 31, 2025

NASA’s EZIE Mission: Unlocking the Secrets of Earth’s Electrojets

NASA’s EZIE Mission: Unlocking the Secrets of Earth’s Electrojets 🚀🌌 NASA/Johns Hopkins APL Introduction On March 14, 2025 , NASA launched the Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer (EZIE) , a groundbreaking mission to study auroral electrojets —powerful electrical currents flowing through Earth’s atmosphere during auroras. These electrojets play a vital role in space weather , which can disrupt GPS, satellite communications, and power grids . Using three small CubeSats , EZIE will provide unprecedented data to improve our understanding of these currents and their impact on Earth’s technological infrastructure. But how does it work, and why does it matter? Let’s dive in! 🌎 The Science Behind Auroral Electrojets What Are Auroral Electrojets? Electrojets are intense electric currents flowing through Earth’s ionosphere at altitudes of about 100 km (62 miles) . They are linked to the aurora borealis (Northern Lights) and aurora australis (Southern Lights) and occur when charged particl...