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Science Wolves howl at Full Moon: Guess what happens On The Moon?
Science Wolves howl at Full Moon: Guess what happens On The Moon? | Wolves howl at Full Moon: Guess what happens On The Moon? |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Friday, 18 April 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsUniversity of Maryland scientist Tim Stubbs, who is working at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, states that the Moon is inside the magnetotail of the Earth about three days before a Full Moon and stays inside until about six days afterwards. A magnetosphere is a region around a body (say, the Earth in this case) that contains that body’s magnetic field. Any magnetized (with a metal core) planet, such as Earth, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, contain a magnetosphere. The solar wind causes the magnetosphere to bow out into a tail on the region of the Earth that is away from the Sun. Thus, the magnetotail is created. During the time the Moon is inside the magnetotail, which contains hot charged particles, it gives the Moon a negative charge (from the electron particles, which are negatively charged). The effect is not so noticed on the day-side of the Moon (the side facing Earth) because sunlight cancels out the charged particles for the most part, but the charged effect is enhanced on the night-side (the side away from Earth). Electrons accumulate in mass and voltages can reach hundreds, even thousands, of volts. According to Stubbs, if an astronaut would walk on the surface of the Moon, on its night-side, when the magnetotail is present, the moonwalker would experience something very similar to an Earthling pulling a piece of clothing out of a hot dryer or running your socks across the carpet. The astronaut would sense a crackling sensation (static) as electricity builds up around him or her. Stubbs says, “Proper grounding is strongly recommended.” In fact, Stubbs reported that in the past scientists were perplexed with images from the Surveyor 7 mission, which showed a lunar atmosphere of dust in certain images of the Moon, but was absent in other images taken at different times. Scientists now postulate that the build up of electrical charge actually lifted up the light moon dust a little bit off the ground; thus, producing the dust-like atmosphere on the Moon during Full Moons. Scientists also think that dust storms are produced on the Moon from the interaction of the charged particles in the magnetotail and the lunar moon dust. However, let's not get too concerned, yet, about Moon static. Please read on. |
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