{ "id": 12960, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/", "page_type": "Infographic", "title": "Ionosphere Graphics", "description": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above Earth’s surface, the ionosphere is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. It’s neither fully Earth nor space, and instead, reacts to both terrestrial weather below and solar energy streaming in from above, forming a complex space weather system of its own. The particles of the ionosphere carry electrical charge that can disrupt communications signals, cause satellites in low-Earth orbit to become electrically charged, and, in extreme cases, cause power outages on the ground. Positioned on the edge of space and intermingled with the neutral atmosphere, the ionosphere’s response to conditions on Earth and in space is difficult to pin down. || ", "release_date": "2018-05-31T19:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2023-05-03T13:46:44.552542-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 403890, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers.jpg", "filename": "Airglow_Layers.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 1274, "height": 688, "pixels": 876512 }, "main_video": { "id": 2, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a001700/a001703/4559_Kepler_Neptune_Twitter_720.mp4", "filename": "4559_Kepler_Neptune_Twitter_720.mp4", "media_type": "Movie", "alt_text": "", "width": 1280, "height": 720, "pixels": 921600 }, "progress": "Complete", "media_groups": [ { "id": 326636, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326636", "widget": "Basic text with HTML", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above Earth’s surface, the ionosphere is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. It’s neither fully Earth nor space, and instead, reacts to both terrestrial weather below and solar energy streaming in from above, forming a complex space weather system of its own.


The particles of the ionosphere carry electrical charge that can disrupt communications signals, cause satellites in low-Earth orbit to become electrically charged, and, in extreme cases, cause power outages on the ground. Positioned on the edge of space and intermingled with the neutral atmosphere, the ionosphere’s response to conditions on Earth and in space is difficult to pin down.", "items": [], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326637, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326637", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation.

Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247935, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403890, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers.jpg", "filename": "Airglow_Layers.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 1274, "height": 688, "pixels": 876512 } }, { "id": 247936, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403891, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers_print.jpg", "filename": "Airglow_Layers_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 1024, "height": 552, "pixels": 565248 } }, { "id": 247937, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403892, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers_searchweb.png", "filename": "Airglow_Layers_searchweb.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 320, "height": 180, "pixels": 57600 } }, { "id": 247938, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403889, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers_web.png", "filename": "Airglow_Layers_web.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 320, "height": 172, "pixels": 55040 } }, { "id": 247939, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403888, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Airglow_Layers_thm.png", "filename": "Airglow_Layers_thm.png", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Stretching from roughly 50 to 400 miles above the surface, this region, called the ionosphere, is an electrified layer of the upper atmosphere, generated by extreme ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Understanding the ionosphere’s extreme variability is tricky because it requires detangling interactions between the different factors at play — interactions of which we don’t have a clear picture. That’s where airglow comes in. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 80, "height": 40, "pixels": 3200 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326638, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326638", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Sunlight breaks atmospheric molecules apart, knocking off electrons and leaving behind a sea of charged electrons and ions. This population of electrically charged particles is the ionosphere, and it exists in the same space as the neutral upper atmosphere.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247940, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403893, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Ionosphere20Graphic2018.jpg", "filename": "Ionosphere20Graphic2018.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Sunlight breaks atmospheric molecules apart, knocking off electrons and leaving behind a sea of charged electrons and ions. This population of electrically charged particles is the ionosphere, and it exists in the same space as the neutral upper atmosphere.Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 2550, "height": 3300, "pixels": 8415000 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326639, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326639", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "The concentration of charged particles in the ionosphere waxes and wanes with the Sun. The ionosphere is dense during the day. When the Sun sets, ionization ceases, and charged particles recombine gradually through the night, so density drops.

The ionosphere is roughly divided into three altitude regions based on what wavelength of solar radiation they absorb: the D, E and F regions, with D being the lowermost region and F, the uppermost.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247941, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403894, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Layers20of20the20Ionosphere2018.jpg", "filename": "Layers20of20the20Ionosphere2018.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "The concentration of charged particles in the ionosphere waxes and wanes with the Sun. The ionosphere is dense during the day. When the Sun sets, ionization ceases, and charged particles recombine gradually through the night, so density drops. The ionosphere is roughly divided into three altitude regions based on what wavelength of solar radiation they absorb: the D, E and F regions, with D being the lowermost region and F, the uppermost.Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 1700, "height": 2200, "pixels": 3740000 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326640, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326640", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "ICON and GOLD team up to explore Earth’s interface to space — a little-understood area that’s close to home but historically hard to observe.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247942, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403895, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/ICON_and_GOLD_Infographic_Final.jpg", "filename": "ICON_and_GOLD_Infographic_Final.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "ICON and GOLD team up to explore Earth’s interface to space — a little-understood area that’s close to home but historically hard to observe. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 2758, "height": 5406, "pixels": 14909748 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326641, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326641", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Earth's atmospheric layers further shield the planet and airborne and spaceborne assets from harmful solar particles and radiation.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247943, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403896, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Atmosphere20Layers_2018.jpg", "filename": "Atmosphere20Layers_2018.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Earth's atmospheric layers further shield the planet and airborne and spaceborne assets from harmful solar particles and radiation. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 803, "height": 621, "pixels": 498663 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326642, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326642", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "Earth's atmospheric layers further shield the planet and airborne and spaceborne assets from harmful solar particles and radiation.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247944, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403897, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/Ionosphere20Layer20Graphic_2018.jpg", "filename": "Ionosphere20Layer20Graphic_2018.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Earth's atmospheric layers further shield the planet and airborne and spaceborne assets from harmful solar particles and radiation. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 803, "height": 629, "pixels": 505087 } } ], "extra_data": {} }, { "id": 326643, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12960/#media_group_326643", "widget": "Single image", "title": "", "caption": "", "description": "This model is an indication of the complexity of the ionosphere-thermosphere-mesosphere (ITM) system of planet Earth and the range of physical processes operating.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "items": [ { "id": 247945, "type": "media", "extra_data": null, "title": null, "caption": null, "instance": { "id": 403898, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012960/TerrestrialAtmosITMProcesses.jpg", "filename": "TerrestrialAtmosITMProcesses.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "This model is an indication of the complexity of the ionosphere-thermosphere-mesosphere (ITM) system of planet Earth and the range of physical processes operating. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 3355, "height": 2205, "pixels": 7397775 } } ], "extra_data": {} } ], "studio": "GMS", "funding_sources": [ "PAO" ], "credits": [ { "role": "Graphic designer", "people": [ { "name": "Mary P. Hrybyk-Keith", "employer": "TRAX International" } ] } ], "missions": [ "Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD)", "Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON)" ], "series": [], "tapes": [], "papers": [], "datasets": [], "nasa_science_categories": [ "Sun" ], "keywords": [ "Earth Science", "Graphics", "Heliophysics", "Icon", "Infographic", "Ionosphere", "Ionosphere/Magnetosphere Dynamics", "Location", "Solar Wind", "Space Weather", "Sun-earth Interactions" ], "recommended_pages": [], "related": [ { "id": 12963, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12963/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "Airglow Imagery", "description": "Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is sparked by day-to-day solar radiation. Airglow carries information on the upper atmosphere’s temperature, density, and composition, but it also helps us trace how particles move through the region itself. Vast, high-altitude winds sweep through the ionosphere, pushing its contents around the globe — and airglow’s subtle dance follows their lead, highlighting global patterns. || ", "release_date": "2018-06-02T15:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2024-02-22T00:19:19.632987-05:00", "main_image": { "id": 403649, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012963/iss044e045565_NASA:Scott_Kelly.jpg", "filename": "iss044e045565_NASA:Scott_Kelly.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "PhotographSince November 2000, people have been living continuously on the International Space Station. To celebrate humanity's 15th anniversary off planet Earth, consider this snapshot from space of our galaxy and our home world posing together beyond the orbital outpost. The Milky Way stretches below the curve of Earth's limb in the scene that also records a faint red, extended airglow. The galaxy's central bulge appears with starfields cut by dark rifts of obscuring interstellar dust. The picture was taken by Astronaut Scott Kelly on August 9, 2015, the 135th day of his one-year mission in space.Credit: NASA/Scott Kelly", "width": 1600, "height": 1065, "pixels": 1704000 } }, { "id": 12961, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12961/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "ICON Graphics", "description": "The Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, is a low-Earth orbiting satellite that will give us new information about how Earth’s atmosphere interacts with near-Earth space — a give-and-take that plays a major role in the safety of our satellites and reliability of communications signals. Specifically, ICON investigates the connections between the neutral atmosphere — which extends from here near the surface to far above us, at the edge of space — and the electrically charged part of the atmosphere, called the ionosphere. The particles of the ionosphere carry electrical charge that can disrupt communications signals, cause satellites in low-Earth orbit to become electrically charged, and, in extreme cases, cause power outages on the ground. || ", "release_date": "2018-05-24T19:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2023-05-03T13:46:45.940229-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 403820, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012961/ICONtrans_print.jpg", "filename": "ICONtrans_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "ICON on a transparent background.Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } } ], "sources": [], "products": [ { "id": 12902, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/12902/", "page_type": "Produced Video", "title": "The Secrets behind Earth’s Multi-colored Glow", "description": "What does our planet look like from space? Most are familiar with the beloved images of the blue marble or pale blue dot — Earth from 18,000 and 3.7 billion miles away, respectively. But closer to home, within the nearest region of space, you might encounter an unfamiliar sight. If you peer down on Earth from just 300 miles above the surface, near the orbit of the International Space Station, you can see vibrant swaths of red and green or purple and yellow light emanating from the upper atmosphere. This is airglow. Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light in order to shed their excess energy. Or, it can happen when atoms and molecules that have been ionized by sunlight collide with and capture a free electron. In both cases, they eject a particle of light — called a photon — in order to relax again. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is energized by day-to-day solar radiation. || ", "release_date": "2018-10-22T10:00:00-04:00", "update_date": "2023-05-03T13:46:19.257214-04:00", "main_image": { "id": 405598, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a010000/a012900/a012902/12902_Airglow_VX-919658_large.00320_print.jpg", "filename": "12902_Airglow_VX-919658_large.00320_print.jpg", "media_type": "Image", "alt_text": "Music: \"Nature Daydream\" by Laurent Dury [SACEM], \"Grape Picking\" by Laurent Dury [SACEM] from Killer TracksComplete transcript available.Watch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.", "width": 1024, "height": 576, "pixels": 589824 } } ], "newer_versions": [], "older_versions": [], "alternate_versions": [] }