Magnetic Reconnection Throughout the Solar System

  • Released Thursday, March 12th, 2020
  • Updated Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023 at 1:45PM
  • ID: 20310

Magnetic reconnection is one of the most important processes in the space. Reconnection occurs when crossed magnetic field lines snap, explosively flinging away nearby particles at high speeds. The following animations illustrate this magnetic explosion on the Sun, near black holes, around Earth.

The solar wind flows around Earth's protective magnetic field, the magnetosphere. Reconnection occurs in small bursts when the magnetosphere is impacted by the solar wind.

For More Information

See nasa.gov



Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Conceptual Image Laboratory