NASA’s EZIE (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) mission will use three CubeSats to map Earth’s auroral electrojets — intense electric currents that flow high above Earth’s polar regions when auroras glow in the sky. As the trio orbits Earth, each satellite will use four dishes pointed at different angles to measure magnetic fields created by the electrojets. (NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben)
High above Earth’s poles, powerful electrical currents known as auroral electrojets surge through the upper atmosphere whenever auroras light up the sky. These intense currents, carrying nearly a million amps per second, can cause major magnetic disturbances on the ground, sometimes leading to power outages and disruptions in communication systems.
To better understand these dynamic space weather phenomena, NASA is set to launch the EZIE (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) mission in March 2024. This groundbreaking mission aims to study the behavior of auroral electrojets, helping scientists predict and mitigate their potential impacts on astronauts, satellites, and Earth’s power grids.
By analyzing the Earth-Sun connection, the EZIE mission will contribute to improving space weather forecasts, ultimately enhancing our ability to protect critical infrastructure and human activities reliant on satellite technology.
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Stay tuned for updates on NASA’s space weather research, the impact of auroral electrojets, and advancements in Earth’s magnetic field studies.
The EZIE mission includes three CubeSats, each about the size of a carry-on suitcase. These small satellites will fly in a pearls-on-a-string formation, following each other as they orbit Earth from pole to pole about 350 miles (550 kilometers) overhead. The spacecraft will look down toward the electrojets, which flow about 60 miles (100 kilometers) above the ground in an electrified layer of Earth’s atmosphere called the ionosphere.
During every orbit, each EZIE spacecraft will map the electrojets to uncover their structure and evolution. The spacecraft will fly over the same region 2 to 10 minutes apart from one another, revealing how the electrojets change.
Previous ground-based experiments and spacecraft have observed auroral electrojets, which are a small part of a vast electric circuit that extends 100,000 miles (160,000 kilometers) from Earth to space. But for decades, scientists have debated what the overall system looks like and how it evolves. The mission team expects EZIE to resolve that debate.
The mission will launch during what’s known as solar maximum — a phase during the 11-year solar cycle when the Sun’s activity is stronger and more frequent. This is an advantage for EZIE’s science.
“It’s better to launch during solar max,” Kepko said. “The electrojets respond directly to solar activity.”
“What EZIE does is unique,” said Larry Kepko, EZIE mission scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “EZIE is the first mission dedicated exclusively to studying the electrojets, and it does so with a completely new measurement technique.”
