By WEB DESK: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is set to launch three rockets into the path of an upcoming total solar eclipse on April 8, aiming to learn more about Earth’s atmosphere, with the event anticipated to cast parts of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico into darkness.
As per the reports, these launches serve a crucial scientific purpose: to enhance our understanding of how the sudden decrease in sunlight impacts the Earth’s atmosphere. The rapid transition from day to night during an eclipse triggers significant temperature drops and behavioral changes in animals, yet scientists possess limited knowledge about its effects on the ionosphere – the region extending between 55 to 310 miles above the Earth’s surface.
In the ionosphere (a region extending between 55 to 310 miles above the Earth’s surface), ultraviolet radiation from the sun routinely ionizes atoms, generating electrically charged particles that contribute to the upper atmosphere’s expansion. However, during sunset, these ions recombine into neutral atoms, only to be ionized again at dawn.
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To investigate these phenomena, NASA engineers plan to launch three rockets – before, during, and after the eclipse – from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Despite the moon blocking only 81.4 per cent of sunlight over this facility, researchers aim to utilise the temporary dimming to study the extent of disturbances caused by the eclipse.
The initiative follows a similar experiment conducted during last October’s partial “ring of fire” solar eclipse, where results indicated disruptions capable of affecting radio and satellite communications. The upcoming launches aim to further our understanding by examining whether these disturbances occur consistently and at what altitude they manifest.
“We are super excited to relaunch [the rockets] during the total eclipse, to see if the perturbations start at the same altitude and if their magnitude and scale remain the same,” remarked Aroh Barjatya, a professor of engineering and physics at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, leading the project, in a statement released by NASA.
