The Solar Wind Since our sun formed, around 4.6 billion years ago it has been the ultimate source of energy and light on Earth. Made of 73% hydrogen, 25% helium and around 50 other trace elements and radiating 4 x 1026 watts of energy every second , it has not only emitted electromagnetic radiation through the nuclear fusion of atoms in its core but also produces huge amounts of ionised gas due to the high temperatures. This gas is known as the …showed first 75 words of 3022 total…

…showed last 75 words of 3022 total…effect was known as the South Atlantic Anomaly that affected satellites but whose cause was unknown. In fact the high-energy particles pose hazards to living things as well as electrical systems. This places practical limits on regions for safe spaceflight so it has to be confined to below 400km, as for example, the radiation dosage at 2500km in the inner belt is extremely severe and means that even electronic instruments have a limited lifespan there.