1999 SPACE SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
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Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: |
Synoposis |
| THE DAY THE SOLAR WIND DISAPPEARED | G99-103 | 12/13/99 | 00:05:06 | On May 11, 1999, the solar wind that blows constantly from the Sun virtually disappeared. Dropping to a small fraction of its normal density and to half its normal speed, the solar wind died down enough to allow physicists to observe particles flowing directly from the Sun's corona to Earth. This severe change in the solar wind also drastically changed the shape of Earth's magnetic field and produced a rare auroral display at Earth's North Pole. |
TAPE CONTENTS: |
| ITEM (1): THE DAY THE SOLAR WIND DISAPPEARED - As the solar wind dissipates on May 11, 1999, the magnetosphere and bow shock around Earth expand to five times their normal size. The aurora, which usually forms ovals around Earth's poles, fills in over the northern polar cap. Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (2): POLAR IONOSPHERIC X-RAY IMAGING EXPERIMENT (PIXIE) - X ray images of the North Pole reveal the "polar rain" of electrons that fell on Earth's atmosphere on May 11, 1999. Courtesy: NASA / Lockheed Martin
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| ITEM (3): POLAR VISIBLE IMAGING SYSTEM - Ultraviolet and visible light images of the aurora borealis show the unusual occurrence of aurora over the North Pole. Courtesy: NASA / University of Iowa |
| ITEM (4): MODEL OF THE SOLAR WIND AND MAGNETOSPHERE - computer model driven by science data shows Earth's bow shock - the leading, colored edge to the left -- stretching out toward the Sun as solar wind density drops. The magnetosphere (gray shading) changes from a windsock shape to a dipole. Courtesy: University of Maryland
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| ITEM (5): SOHO'S VIEW OF THE SUN - Extreme ultraviolet images of the Sun from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) revealed nothing unusual during the interval from May 9-11, 1999. Courtesy: NASA / ESA
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| ITEM (6): ISTP CONSTELLATION - A collaborative effort by four space agencies and more than a dozen countries, the International Solar Terrestrial Physics program studies the Sun-Earth system with many spacecraft. Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (7): NASA'S WIND SPACECRAFT - Launched in November 1994 by NASA, Wind spends most of its time sampling the solar wind on the day side of Earth. Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (8): NASA'S POLAR SPACECRAFT - Launched in February 1996 by NASA, Polar makes daily passes over Earth's north and south poles in order to study the magnetosphere and the aurora. Courtesy: NASA
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