There Is A Man-Made Barrier Surrounding Our Planet

Humans have accidentally generated a fence around Earth, and although it might not be an ultramodern force field, it is still damn cool. NASA scientists have revealed that certain radio communications, called VLF (very low frequency), are capable of interrelating with particles in space, stirring them in certain directions.

We know we can disturb the space weather around Earth, but this discovery might direct to techniques that we could essentially control it. The study has been issued in Space Science Reviews.

Artist's impression of the bubble with the Van Allen Belt. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Genna Duberstein

Co-author of the study, Phil Erickson, assistant director at the MIT Haystack Observatory, said in a statement “A number of experiments and observations have figured out that, under the right conditions, radio communications signals in the VLF frequency range can in fact affect the properties of the high-energy radiation environment around the Earth,”

This particular research is a complete review on the human effects around our planet. It discusses the influence of high-altitude nuclear tests, chemical discharge experiments, and high-frequency wave warming in the ionosphere. The analysis goes into the physics behind all those happenings and discloses the up-to-date examination of the VLF interaction.

Earth is enclosed by sections jam-packed with charged particles, known as the Van Allen Belts. It was usually anticipated that there were two such sections, but it turns out that the picture is a lot more complex. They are a consequence of Earth’s magnetic field and act as an almost impenetrable barrier, keeping the most energetic electrons from reaching our planet.

Using data from NASA’s Van Allen Probe, the researchers have discovered that the VLF-induced bubble extends up to the inner edge of the Van Allen Belt and not further. The team speculate that the VLF bubble is pushing the Van Allen Belt outwards.

This idea is strengthened by data from the 1960s, which shows the Van Allen Belt to be much closer to our planet than it currently is. Back then, VLF transmissions were a lot more limited, which could explain the difference. The researchers speculate that if there were no VLF, the boundary would stretch closer to Earth.

The team suggests that with further study, we might discover if we can remove excess particles from lower Earth’s orbit. This might help during extreme space weather events that might damage satellites and other instruments.

There are already plans in place to test VLF from higher in the atmosphere to see exactly what we can achieve with them.