Pulsating aurora: Killer electrons in strumming sky lights
Published Date: 11/25/2020
Source: phys.org
Computer simulations explain how electrons with wide-ranging energies rain into Earth's upper and middle atmosphere during a phenomenon known as the pulsating aurora. The findings, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, suggest that the higher-energy electrons resulting from this process could cause destruction of the part of the ozone in the mesosphere, about 60 kilometers above Earth's surface. The study was a collaboration between scientists in Japan, including at Nagoya University, and colleagues in the US, including from NASA.