NASA launches TRACERS Mission to Study Earth’s Magnetic Defense Against Space Storms:
NASA has launched the TRACERS mission (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) to better understand how Earth’s magnetic field protects the planet from solar storms and space weather. The mission is aimed at studying magnetic reconnection—a process where the Sun’s magnetic field interacts with Earth’s magnetic shield, causing energy bursts that can impact satellites, power grids, and communications.The TRACERS mission was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. It includes two small satellites flying closely together to study the polar cusp—a region near the North Pole where the Earth’s magnetic field is most directly affected by solar activity.
