From NASA Science News January 15, 2010: Last year, when NASA’s IBEX (Interstellar Boundary Explorer) spacecraft discovered a giant ribbon at the edge of the solar system, researchers were mystified. They called it a “shocking result” and puzzled over its origin.
Now the mystery may have been solved.
“We believe the ribbon is a reflection,” says Jacob Heerikhuisen, a NASA Heliophysics Guest Investigator from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. “It is where solar wind particles heading out into interstellar space are reflected back into the solar system by a galactic magnetic field.”
Heerikhuisen is the lead author of a paper reporting the results in the Jan. 10th edition of the Astrophysical Journal Letters.
“This is an important finding,” says Arik Posner, IBEX program scientist at NASA Headquarters. “Interstellar space just beyond the edge of the solar system is mostly unexplored territory. Now we know, there could be a strong, well-organized magnetic field sitting right on our doorstep.”
The IBEX data fit in nicely with recent results from Voyager. Voyager 1 and 2 are near the edge of the solar system and they also have sensed strong* magnetism nearby. Voyager measurements are relatively local to the spacecraft, however. IBEX is filling in the “big picture.” The ribbon it sees is vast and stretches almost all the way across the sky, suggesting that the magnetic field behind it must be equally vast.
Although maps of the ribbon (see below) seem to show a luminous body, the ribbon emits no light. Instead, it makes itself known via particles called “energetic neutral atoms” (ENAs)–mainly garden-variety hydrogen atoms. The ribbon emits these particles, which are picked up by IBEX in Earth orbit.
Above: A comparison of IBEX observations (left) with a 3D magnetic reflection model (right). More images: data, model.
The reflection process posited by Heerikhuisen et al. is a bit complicated, involving multiple “charge exchange” reactions between protons and hydrogen atoms. The upshot, however, is simple. Particles from the solar wind that escape the solar system are met ~100 astronomical units (~15 billion kilometers) away by an interstellar magnetic field. Magnetic forces intercept the escaping particles and sling them right back where they came from.
“If this mechanism is correct–and not everyone agrees–then the shape of the ribbon is telling us a lot about the orientation of the magnetic field in our corner of the Milky Way galaxy,” notes Heerikhuisen.
And upon this field, the future may hinge.
The solar system is passing through a region of the Milky Way filled with cosmic rays and interstellar clouds. The magnetic field of our own sun, inflated by the solar wind into a bubble called the “heliosphere,” substantially protects us from these things. However, the bubble itself is vulnerable to external fields. A strong magnetic field just outside the solar system could press against the heliosphere and interact with it in unknown ways. Will this strengthen our natural shielding—or weaken it? No one can say.
Right: An artist’s concept of interstellar clouds in the galactic neighborhood of the sun. [more]
“IBEX will monitor the ribbon closely in the months and years ahead,” says Posner. “We could see the shape of the ribbon change—and that would show us how we are interacting with the galaxy beyond.”
It seems we can learn a lot by looking in the mirror. Stay tuned to Science@NASA for updates.
h/t to Leif Svalgaard
Discover more from Watts Up With That?
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Leif’s universe is getting bigger and it sounds like fun. Thanks for the pointer.
Mike Ramsey
Great post: Perhaps it raises more questions than answers.
If so, the challenge to Science is to find the answers to those questions.
Which begs the question> how much do we really know about the underlying basis for Earth’s Climate?
We are just at the doorstep of understanding the interactions between local and distant systems, be they Magnetic or other (yet to be discovered) forces.
Now I’m HAPPY that solar activity is on the increase, or seems to be anyway.
A little extra solar energy is greatly preferrable to being zapped from outer space.
I wonder where they came up with the distance of 100 AU beyond the heliosphere for this interstellar magnetic field. I think a ring current could be located there, generating a toroidal magnetic field. It’s known that ring currents will produce energetic neutral atoms, like the ring currents around Earth. Although due to the sparse particle density in the ISM, I suspect the double layer in the heliosheath might be an additional source of ENA’s, or may even be the sole source. The ring current’s magnetic field out in the ISM would attract more charge carriers where it would “impinge” (or press against) the heliosheath’s DL. Some ions and electrons could get trapped in the electric field between the two charge sheaths of the DL, producing a bundle of Birkeland filaments with charged particles spiraling around their linear flow, like a belt, around the heliosheath. As the particles collide some are neutralized and their trajectories carry them to IBEX.
Either way, it all starts with the ring current surrounding the heliosphere in the ISM.
From a physicsworld article:
Even though everyone knows they’re dealing with plasma, They’re just treating it as a hot gas and only using MHD, however MHD and hot gas is an over-simplification of true plasma behavior. It makes the maths easier, but isn’t necessarily an accurate representation of actual plasma behavior. We should consider treating the heliosheath as a plasma double layer. The electric field between the charge sheaths in a double layer is a very important aspect of plasma dynamics. Such as acceleration of charged particles thereby maintaining “supersonic” velocities beyond the heliosphere or why the ACR flux didn’t peak at the boundary, likely due to a DL being a lot more organized than a turbulent termination shock.
I think considering a ring current in the ISM, and the heliosheath as a double layer will provide better answers.
Svensmark’s concept of cloud particle nucleation via GCR could well be getting its big test, if a second feature moderating the sun’s magnetic field has been identified.
I wonder if the various parties predicting generalized cooling over the next two decades or so have factored in any of this? How could they? Anyway, not everyone agrees with the GCR theory.
As I understand it, about 71 of the 342 w/m2 incoming solar radiation is reflected by clouds and aerosols. http://home.iprimus.com.au/nielsens/solrad.html
Therefore, a small change in cloudiness could have a major impact on global temperatures.
About the strength of the field:
Footnote from the original article at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2010/15jan_ibex2.htm
Footnote: * The strong interstellar fields mentioned in this story measure about ~5 microgauss. A microgauss is one millionth of a gauss, a unit of magnetic field strength popular among astronomers and geophysicists. Earth’s magnetic field is about 0.5 gauss or 500,000 microgauss. Magnetic fields pervading interstellar space tend to be much less intense than planetary magnetic fields.
That is simply an electric current, which it is perpendicular to magnetic field:
The ribbon runs perpendicular to the direction of the galactic magnetic field just outside the heliosphere
A Birkeland current.
Stop talking please about phantoms “reflections”
Isn’t this the thing that got Captain Kirk killed?
They called it a “shocking result” and puzzled over its origin.
Didn’t they expect to find anything new?
I believe that as soon as any human crewed ship passes through that ribbon, one of them will begin to exhibit rapidly progressing mental and telekinetic skills, and the crew will have to act rapidly to kill him or he will attempt to return and rule the world.
Somewhere in their book The Chilling Stars, Calder and Svensmark say something like: “Meteoroligists think the third planet of this tiny yellow star at the outskirts of Milky Way is so grand that the rest of the Universe can be ignored”
Now we begin to have a clue of our position, what we might be exposed to and what might mitigate the effects of what’s happening around us.
It is fascinating, but scarry. We are not in charge of the climate and do not determine our fate.
“Philip T. Downman (09:51:55) :
[…]
It is fascinating, but scarry. We are not in charge of the climate and do not determine our fate.”
I prefer very much to be in the hand of natural forces than to be in the hands of an idiocracy. So i don’t see that as negative.
A strong well-organized magnetic field is sitting right on our doorstep? By implication we then deduce there must be a strong electric current creating it. Where does all this power come from? The galactic core? Intriguing.
Of course what it is, Exactly, is not going to be absolutely known until we get out there. Having said that, I have to wonder if it plays any role in the way stars take their paths as they circle the galactic core?
“The moving plasma, i.e., charged particles flows, are currents that produce self-magnetic fields, however weak.” — A. L. Peratt
“An electromotive force [mathematical equation] giving rise to electrical currents in conducting media is produced wherever a relative perpendicular motion of plasma and magnetic fields exists.” — Dr. Anthony L. Peratt, Los Alamos National Laboratory
When I first saw that image of the Solar System moving through the interstellar cloud, a shiver ran down my spine. Anyone else read Poul Andersan’s “Brain Wave”?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_Wave
“If this mechanism is correct–and not everyone agrees–then the shape of the ribbon is telling us a lot about the orientation of the magnetic field in our corner of the Milky Way galaxy,” notes Heerikhuisen.
The ribbon shows to be relatively well focused, which is unlikely to be so ordered by GM field, carried by cosmic rays impacting from many directions.
My original suggestions, some months ago, that it was shaped by the heliospheric current sheet, was shot down by Dr. L.S. Now it is even clearer, noting position of the nose of helioshere, that so may be the case.
Perhahs Heerikhuisen should look closer at this old NASA sketch.
http://www.vukcevic.talktalk.net/HCS.gif
From: “Cosmic Rays and Climate. Part V: Cosmoclimatology”
“Because cosmic rays affect cloud cover and cloud cover affects temperature, cosmic rays are a natural “forcing” in climate model terms.
A change in cloud cover of 3% is equal to 1.5 watts per meter squared, which is about equal to all the forcing of CO2 as assigned by the IPCC in its climate model.
Svensmark: “The bottom line seems to be that instead of thinking of clouds being a result of climate, it actually is sort of upside down. It is that the climate is a result of changes in the clouds.”
Solar conference link on current minimum.
http://eventcg.com/clients/agu/fm09/U34A.html
Bring it home: Witness how a (now old) CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) computer monitor or old “TV screen” works:
Electrons emitted by a cathode are deflected across the breadth of a CRT’s face (impinging on light-producing phosphors) by a magnetic field from a ‘yoke’ positioned at the base of the CRT where the glass CRT ‘necks’ down to only an inch (2.54 cm) or so …
Replace the Electron(s) with ions or ‘plasma’ and the idea is still applicable.
.
.
– Hannes Alfven
– From Alfven’s Nobel acceptance speech, 1970
Still true 40 years later regarding the differences between Plasma Cosmology and how standard cosmology incorporates plasma.
peace,
Tim
In what manner does this new information affect the calculations for the total matter in the Universe? Does this reduce the requirement for dark matter/dark energy?
And, what is this going to look like on 12/21/12 … just kidding.
A new breakthrough in empirical science, envisioned by men like Birkeland, Hans Alfvén and others, literally breaks and shines through the oppresive dark clouds of settled science, of politicized science, which like in the dark ages only aim at power, neglecting the majority of people the human right of enlightment , knowledge and reason, whose fate the “pious” elites always considered to be that of the servants, only to serve their masters and holy patrons.
Tell them just to believe, teach them not to doubt in the words of we, their masters, say and proclaim that there are things not to be known by men, these are the “mysteries”, the dogmas, tell them a tale of an unreachable universe, a confusion, a chaos of strings, of unfathomable and scaring “black holes”, of curve and foldable space, of many dimensions where they will lose reason and being, of things they are not supposed to understand, that they are forbidden to grasp..
Mike Ramsey (08:50:50) :
Leif’s universe?
I know some of you Americans adore him but don’t you think that’s too much?