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Cluster watches Earth’s leaky atmosphere

28 August 2008

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Oxygen escaping from Earth's polar regions

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This artist's impression shows electrically charged oxygen, hydrogen and helium atoms (ions) leaking into space from the Earth atmosphere, over the poles.

ESA's Cluster mission discovered that this accelerated escape is driven by changes in direction of the Earth own magnetic field.

Credits: NASA/ESA

More about...

Cluster overview Double Star overview SOHO overview Solar Orbiter Space weather

Cluster listens to the sounds of Earth Solitary waves in translation New discovery on magnetic reconnection to impact future space missions High-speed beams of charged particles accelerate towards Earth Solar outburst pulls a magnetic slingshot Cluster monitors convection cells over the polar caps Cluster and Double Star uncover more on bright aurorae

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