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The weakest point in the Earth’s magnetic field revolving around South America and the South Atlantic Ocean is “the size of the U.S. of the continents.” Scientists say we are protected from the effects on Earth, but satellites are not so lucky – when they go through anomalies they are bombarded with radiation “more intense than anywhere else in orbit”. Known as the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), or more commonly known as the “Bermuda Triangle of Space”, this field sits where the Earth’s magnetic field is particularly weak.
This means that the particles of solar cosmic rays are not held back to the same extent as they are elsewhere on Earth.
As a result, solar rays come close to about 124 miles from Earth’s surface – in a series of multiple probes into low-Earth orbit (LEO).
John Tardono, a professor of geophysics at the University of Rochester, explained: “I’m not fond of his nickname, but in that field, the intensity of the low geographic field ultimately results in the weakening of the energetic particles of the satellites, at which point spacecraft can be damaged.
“In this way, satellites passing through the area will experience high levels of radiation in the event of damage.
The ISS was affected by radiation (Photo: GETTY)
The earth is protected by a magnetic field (Photo: GETTY)
“Think about electrical discharge or arc.
“With more incoming radiation, the satellite could be charged, and the attendant arcs could be severely damaged.”
In general, the Earth’s magnetic field protects the planet’s surface at altitudes of 620 and 37,000 miles.
But the low itude elevation of the radiation hotspot puts it in the orbit of certain satellites, bombarded by protons rising from a radiation of 10 million electron volts.
In the early days of the ISS, the discrepancy would crash the astronauts ’computers, forcing the space agencies to put pressure on their board systems.
The astronauts were also affected by the SAA.
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Part of the Earth’s magnetic field is weak (Photo: GETTY)
Some reported seeing strange white lights flashing before their eyes, and steps have been taken to keep the astronauts safe ever since.
Most of the captured parts of the ISS, such as galleries and sleeping quarters, are in place of strong shielding to reduce the amount of radiation exposed to astronauts.
Astronauts also wear dosimeters, devices that measure their personal exposure to ionizing radiation in real-time and send warnings if they reach dangerous levels.
The Hubble Telescope, which passes through the SAA 10 times a day and spends about 15 percent of its time there, is unable to collect astronomical information during these moments.
Failure to take these steps leads to system failure.
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ISS astronauts experienced its effects in the early days (Photo: GETTY)
Dr. Tarduno added: “Putting the instrument in ‘safe mode’ means that more sensitive operations are cut off by radiation.”
The damage caused by the SAA could also prove costly, as evidenced by the fact that the Japanese satellite Hitomi crashed into the ground in this area.
Hitomi or Astro-H was commissioned by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JXA) to study the most exponential processes in the universe.
One month after its February 2016 launch, its operators lost contact and the satellite was torn apart.
Experts later found that a rotation of 21.7 degrees per hour was reported when the craft was actually stationary due to the spacecraft’s interdisciplinary reference unit.
When an attempt was made to fight a spin that did not exist through the trend control system, the sequel to the events broke it.
Hubble has to power down while traveling through anomalies (Photo: GETTY)
If tors parameters could have detected the error in real-time, they could have corrected it, but the conversation was lost while it was traveling via Satellite SAA.
The unfortunate saga cost JAXA about 27 273 million (21 210 million) and three years of study.
And that could cause more problems in the future.
Recent predictions by NASA scientists Dr. Vijaya Kuang and Professor Andrew Tangborne of the University of Maryland at Baltimore County show that, in addition to migrating west, the discrepancy is increasing in size.
Five years from today, one year could grow by 10 percent compared to 2019 prices.
This pit could also split, or maybe another weak spot is emerging independently and will bite into it, Da Kuang said.
Julian ubert, a researcher at the Paris Institute of Earth Physics, said more research was needed.
He said in January: “Like the weather forecast, you can’t predict major growth over the next few decades.”
