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NASA Just Shot Rockets At The Northern Lights. This Is What Happened
In a unique experiment to understand the Earth’s atmosphere and its interaction with auroral substorms, NASA launched two successful rockets into the night sky on March 25, 2025. As part of the Auroral Waves Excited by Substorm Onset Magnetic Events (AWESOME) mission, the space agency aimed to study how energy from solar winds affects the thermosphere, a layer of our atmosphere.
The launch, which was conducted in collaboration with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, involved two successful rocket launches that released pink, blue, and white vapor tracers at different heights over central Alaska. A team of researchers from UAF was stationed at various ground locations, including Utqiagvik, Kaktovik, Toolik Lake, Eagle, Venetie, and Poker Flat Research Range.
The AWESOME experiment aimed to investigate the stability of the thermosphere during substorms, a phenomenon where energy from solar winds excites the atmosphere. The data collected will help forecasters predict space weather with greater accuracy, enabling better communication, navigation, and spacecraft operations.
Unfortunately, the third rocket failed due to an issue with the Malemute motor and was identified by NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility team. However, the successful launches have provided valuable insights into the Earth’s atmosphere and its interaction with auroral substorms.
The experiment took advantage of the unique conditions surrounding the recent equinox, where the Earth’s magnetic field aligns favorably with the solar wind, making it an ideal time to study this phenomenon. The timing was no accident as it coincides with solar maximum, which is a period when magnetic activity and aurora frequencies are at their peak.
The AWESOME experiment has shed new light on how the atmosphere reacts to auroral substorms, providing crucial data for scientists to better predict space weather and its potential impact on our daily lives.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2025/03/26/nasa-just-shot-rockets-at-the-northern-lights-this-is-what-happened/
