Solar system's shield may be leaking
Thursday, September 30, 2010 - 17:28
in Astronomy & Space
The heliosphere appears to be letting in more cosmic rays, which could pose hazards for long-duration space travelers.A tiny satellite circling Earth is providing an unexpectedly complicated picture of the solar system's heliosphere, the invisible bubble that extends far beyond the planetary orbits to where the solar wind strikes the vast sea of particles and radiation that fill interstellar space, researchers said Thursday.