Corona Spectroscopy Experiment: NASA’s Research Aircraft to Study Solar Eclipse in 2024

2. Corona Spectroscopy Experiment

The next NASA experiment that will be carried out during the total solar eclipse on April 8 2024 is corona spectroscopy. NASA’s WB-57 research aircraft will also fly cameras and spectrometers (tools for examining the composition of light). I

This was done to learn more about the temperature and chemical composition of the corona and large bursts of solar material. By flying the probe along the eclipse’s path, scientists hope to extend their time in the moon’s shadow by more than two minutes.

The research team hopes these observations will provide new insights into the structure in the corona and the source of the constant flow of particles emitted by the sun. The experimental team was led by Shadia Habbal from the University of Hawaii.

3. Listen to the Solar Eclipse

Above Earth’s atmosphere, energy from the sun strips electrons from atoms. This makes the region electrically charged, or “ionized.”

This region, the ionosphere, can help radio communications travel long distances, as is the case for amateur radio operators around the world. However, when the moon blocks the sun during a solar eclipse, the ionosphere can change dramatically, affecting these communications.

Nathaniel Frissell of the University of Scranton invited ham radio operators to participate in a Solar Eclipse QSO Party. In this experiment, they will try to make as many radio contacts as possible (QSO) with other operators in different locations.

Radio operators will note how strong their signal is and how much they observe the ionosphere changing during the eclipse. Similar experiments in the past have shown that changes in the electron content of the ionosphere due to solar eclipses have a significant impact on the passage of radio waves.

2024-04-05 18:03:43
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