Source of "Killer Electrons" in Space Discovered, Study Says


	Source of "Killer Electrons" in Space Discovered, Study Says

PatrisTimoris

7-19-2007 12:54 AM

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tags:

science, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmic radiation, los alamos national laboratory, killer electrons, nasa

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7-19-2007 6:29 AM

monalisa

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<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/25659521-9dab-4260-928e-bfb658ad2073/85214BC1-C5F6-40B0-984F-BC49E2BECABA/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html" href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html" style="font-size: 11px;">news.nationalgeographic.com</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html"><P class="intro">
Scientists have discovered the force that creates "killer electrons," particles that pose a significant hazard to spacecraft and astronauts. 
</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html"><P>
The supercharged particles are also a menace to satellites, which are increasingly vital to phones, television, and other communication systems. 
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Killer electrons are found in the outermost of Earth's doughnut-shaped radiation belts. The belts circle the Earth and are bound by the planet's magnetic fields. 
</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html"><P>
Scientists have long pondered where the killer particles come from and how they accumulate in the radiation belts. 
</P></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070717-space-weather.html"><P>
But a team at New Mexico's Los Alamos National Laboratory may have solved the mystery, and their findings suggest the particles actually form much closer to home. 
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"I think we show conclusively they do not come from further out [in space]. They are accelerated in the radiation belt itself," said Reiner Friedel, co-author of a paper published in the July issue of the journal <I>Nature Physics</I>.
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