"The way to the Cosmos is through the laboratory"
~ Hannes Alfven
Interest in the aurora and the Sun-Earth interaction
has led to a number of technological advances.
The modern space age
The United States' entrance into the space age came from James Van Allen's
interest in the electron stream which produces the aurora. This interest
led to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belts by a Geiger counter
aboard the first American satellite.
All-sky camera
This camera, capable of photographing the entire dome of the sky, was
developed to study the aurora by the Geophysical Institute at the University
of Alaska Fairbanks during the International Geophysical Year (1957-1958).
Simultaneous recordings from multiple all-sky cameras first confirmed
the presence of an auroral oval. All-sky-based technology (Total Sky Imager)
is also used to study clouds and weather.
click to see camera and pictures
All-sky movie
(1173Kb MPEG)
Aurora Color Television Project
The need to accurately capture auroral color and movement in convenient
video format led to the development of a super-sensitive video camera.
Horizontal E-region experiment (HEX)
HEX is the first rocket designed to travel horizontally
across the aurora. It leaves behind a trail of tri-methyl aluminum which
is visible to observers on the ground. By watching the distortion of the
trail over time, observers will study the upwelling of air heated by the
aurora.
HEX rocket
click to see larger image
Supercomputers allow modeling of the aurora ranging from studies on the shapes and production of auroral curtains all the way up to models of the entire magnetosphere. Computer models can act as a virtual laboratory allowing scientists to create, control, and understand processes that are impossible to replicate in a real lab.
Geophysical Institute
903 Koyukuk Drive, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska 99775-7320
site last modified: August 2003 maintained by Asahi Aurora
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