NASA To Launch Rocket Campaign To Study ‘Mysterious' Ionospheric Layers
NASA will launch rockets from Kwajalein Atoll to study Sporadic-E layers, high-altitude clouds that disrupt radio communications, affecting air traffic and military radars.
NASA is set to launch a series of rockets from a remote Pacific island, specifically Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, to study 'mysterious', high-altitude cloud-like structures. These formations can potentially interfere with critical communication systems, making them a significant area of research.
Uncrewed suborbital spacecraft carrying scientific instruments would be launched from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands during the three-week window, starting Friday (Jun 13), under the mission called Sporadic-E ElectroDynamics, or SEED.
The ionosphere, a region of Earth's atmosphere spanning 60 to 1,000 kilometres, consists of charged particles or ions. These ions are partly derived from meteors that burn up in the atmosphere, leaving behind trails of ionised elements like iron, magnesium, calcium, sodium, and potassium suspended in the sky.
These 'heavy metals," which are more massive than the ionosphere's usual particles, tend to settle at lower altitudes, typically below 140 kilometres. At times, they aggregate to form dense clusters known as Sporadic-E layers.
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First Published:
June 13, 2025, 14:56 IST
News tech NASA To Launch Rocket Campaign To Study 'Mysterious' Ionospheric Layers
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