Introduction to the Earth's Magnetosphere

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Ever since the launch of the first Sputnik in 1957, space exploration has advanced on two fronts, manned and unmanned. The manned missions are well known--from Mercury, Gemini and Apollo, to the Space Shuttle and the proposed Space Station Freedom. Millions have watched "Apollo 13" or "The Right Stuff."

In contrast, the exploration of space by unmanned spacecraft has remained almost invisible. The world applauded in 1958, when Explorers 1 and 3 discovered the radiation belt, but the many missions which followed are virtually unknown.

Here is a glimpse of that other side of the space adventure. It includes:

"The Exploration of the Earth's Magnetosphere" is meant to give you, the reader and browser, a brief tour of this strange and fascinating new world. It assumes no prior knowledge and uses no mathematics, though it does require close attention. It includes a quick overview of the relevant physical sciences--magnetism, ions and electrons, plasmas etc.--and also tidbits of history, accessible by a "history button" at the ends of many sections. The files are arranged in an orderlysequence, and the end of each file is linked to the next one, which may be You can access any file directly through the index, or else cover them sequentially, guided by the summary files below: You can also link to a list of additional resources and web links, and the "history button" below brings up a chronology of magnetospheric exploration.

Have fun!

The authors, both scientists engaged in magnetospheric physics, would greatly appreciate comments by users. Please tell us what you have found useful and what was difficult, unclear or (worse) inaccurate. Any suggestions for changes, additions or for new links would be most welcome.

History Button

(Brief Chronology of Magnetospheric Physics and Related Fields)


"Exploration" home page (index)       Glossary



Author and Curator:   Dr. David P. Stern
     Mail to Dr.Stern:   education("at" symbol)phy6.org

Co-author: Dr. Mauricio Peredo

Spanish translation by J. Méndez

Last updated:October 15, 1997