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A rendering of the magnetic field lines of the magnetosphere of the Earth. In astronomy and planetary science, a magnetosphere is a region of space surrounding an astronomical object in which charged particles are affected by that object's magnetic field. [1] [2] It is created by a celestial body with an active interior dynamo.
The magnetosphere of Saturn is the cavity created in the flow of the solar wind by the planet's internally generated magnetic field. Discovered in 1979 by the Pioneer 11 spacecraft, Saturn's magnetosphere is the second largest of any planet in the Solar System after Jupiter .
For the Earth, this could have been an external magnetic field. Early in its history the Sun went through a T-Tauri phase in which the solar wind would have had a magnetic field orders of magnitude larger than the present solar wind. [60] However, much of the field may have been screened out by the Earth's mantle.
Such a visit likely would have shown that the Uranus magnetosphere is similar to those of Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune, the solar system's other giant planets, the researchers said.
Generated by the churning molten metals in Earth’s core, the magnetosphere shields the planet from harmful solar radiation and keeps solar winds from stripping away Earth’s atmosphere.
Solar wind particles can enter the planet's magnetosphere through the cusp region. Because the solar wind exists at all times and not just times of solar flares, the magnetopause is a permanent feature of the space near any planet with a magnetic field. The magnetic field lines of the planet's magnetic field are not stationary.
A type of particle called an energetic neutral atom (ENA) has also been observed to have been produced from its edges. Except for regions near obstacles such as planets or comets , the heliosphere is dominated by material emanating from the Sun, although cosmic rays , fast-moving neutral atoms , and cosmic dust can penetrate the heliosphere ...
This artist's visualisation of WASP-127b, a giant gas planet located about 520 light-years from Earth, shows its newly discovered supersonic jet winds that move around the planet's equator.