On May 10, 2024, the strongest solar storm in 20 years sparked auroras on Earth that were visible as far south as Florida. It also created two new bands of radiation around the planet, researchers report in the February JGR Space Physics.
Earth is encircled by two donut-shaped bands of particles called the Van Allen belts, where energetic protons and electrons from the sun are trapped by the planet’s magnetic field. These permanent belts are split into an inner one between about 6,000 and 12,000 kilometers above Earth’s surface, and an outer one between 25,000 and 45,000 kilometers.
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