{"id":13270,"date":"2021-07-19T09:48:45","date_gmt":"2021-07-19T08:48:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=13270"},"modified":"2021-07-19T09:48:45","modified_gmt":"2021-07-19T08:48:45","slug":"physicists-accurately-quantify-the-electric-field-of-the-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/physicists-accurately-quantify-the-electric-field-of-the-sun\/13270\/","title":{"rendered":"Physicists accurately quantify the electric field of the Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"
The study, conducted by scientists at the University of Iowa<\/a>, provides the first detailed measurement of the electric field of the Sun and how it interacts with the solar wind<\/a> \u2013 charged particles that flow rapidly through space that potentially affect the Earth and its technologies such as telecommunications and satellites.<\/p>\n To conduct their investigation, the team employed the Parker Solar Probe to calculate the distribution of electrons within the Sun’s magnetic field. The Parker Solar Probe was situated within a staggering 0.1 astronomical units (AU), around nine million miles of the Sun, closer than any spacecraft has ever been before. By measuring the distribution of electrons, the researchers were able to determine the size, breadth, and scope of the electric field of the Sun more comprehensively than ever before.<\/p>\n Jasper Halekas, an associate professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Iowa and the study’s corresponding author, said: ” The key point I would make is you can’t make these measurements far away from the Sun. You can only make them when you get close. It’s like trying to understand a waterfall by looking at the river a mile downstream. The measurements we made at 0.1 AU, we’re actually in the waterfall. The solar wind is still accelerating at that point. It’s really just an awesome environment to be in.”<\/p>\nThe enigmatic electric field<\/h3>\n