magnetic field

Using a powerful radio telescope to peer into the early universe, a team of California astronomers has obtained the first direct measurement of a nascent galaxy's magnetic field as it appeared 6.5 billion years ago.

(ESO) Astronomers have discovered a most bizarre celestial object that emitted 40 visible-light flashes before disappearing again.

It is most likely to be a missing link in the family of neutron stars, the first case of an object with an amazingly powerful magnetic field that showed some brief, strong visible-light activity.

Oxygen is constantly leaking out of Earth's atmosphere and into space. Now, ESA's formation-flying quartet of satellites, Cluster, has discovered the physical mechanism that is driving the escape.

It turns out that the Earth's own magnetic field is accelerating the oxygen away.

New scientific evidence suggests that deep inside the planet Mercury, iron "snow" forms and falls toward the center of the planet, much like snowflakes form in Earth's atmosphere and fall to the ground.

The movement of this iron snow could be responsible for Mercury's mysterious magnetic field.

(American Geophysical Union) Some light in Earth's aurora glow is polarized -- a state not thought possible for the aurora, new observations indicate.

The findings may improve understanding of Earth’s upper atmosphere, its magnetic field, and the energies of particles from the Sun.

If detected also in the atmospheres of the other planets, such polarization may help map the Sun's extended magnetic field, researchers say.

Some light in Earth's aurora glow is polarized -- a state not thought possible for the aurora, new observations indicate.

The findings may improve understanding of Earth's upper atmosphere, its magnetic field, and the energies of particles from the Sun.

If detected also in the atmospheres of the other planets, such polarization may help map the Sun's extended magnetic field, researchers say.

Researchers studying cores of sediment collected 40 years ago have found evidence for magnetic field vortices in the Earth's core beneath the South Pole.

The results contrast with earlier studies at lower latitudes, and could lead to a better understanding of processes in the core.

Naval warships might look like all-powerful vessels but they are also highly vulnerable to being spotted by the enemy.

That fear of being detected has led the military to develop new stealth technologies that allow ships to be virtually invisible to the human eye, to dodge roaming radars, put heat-seeking missiles off the scent, disguise their own sound vibrations and even reduce the way they distort the Earth's magnetic field.

Swedish researchers present in today's Web edition of the journal Science evidence that their theory about the core of the earth is correct.

Among other applications, the findings may be of significance for our understanding of the cooling down of the Earth, and of the stability of the Earth's magnetic field.