EarthRef.org Digital Archive (ERDA) -- Earth's Magnetic Field and Interaction With Solar Wind

Description
The image shows the Earth's magnetic field with it's components
labeled and their interaction with solar wind emitted from the sun. To begin, the magnetic field is generated from convection (circulation) of the Earth's predominantly iron (Fe) liquid outer core (the Dynamo Theory). The magnetic field occurs all around the Earth and the area contained within is referred to as the Magnetosphere, also known as the region of space influenced by the Earth's magnetic field. The boundary of the magnetosphere is known as the Magnetopause and is the end of planet's region of magnetic influence. Beyond the magnetopause is the Bow Shock, which is the part of the magnetic field that helps force the solar wind around the magnetosphere. The Magnetosheath is the region of space between the bow shock and the magnetopause. Solar Wind is matter, consisting of about 95% hydrogen and 4% helium, in the plasma phase that is released by the sun, traveling into space and eventually running into the Earth's magnetic field. Solar wind causes the near side (sun facing) of the Earth's magnetic field to be condensed because it deflects the solar wind around the Earth's magnetic field. The far side (away from the sun) is then elongated by the solar wind and stretches out for a much longer distance, this section is referred to as the Magnetotail. The Cusps are the areas marking the separation between magnetic field lines going sunward and those going tailward. The Trapping Region (Van Allen Belts) are sections that consist of radiation from solar wind that becomes trapped within the magnetosphere. The particles become trapped because they are repelled from regions with a higher magnetic field strength. The Lobes are a vast region of the magnetotail between the magnetopause and the central plasma sheet, with each side having an opposite magnetic field direction. The Plasma Sheet extends down the magnetotail dividing the two lobes. If the plasma sheet didn't separate the two parts they would interact and cancel each other out, eliminating the magnetic field. Plasma (solar wind, plasma sheet) is formed when a gas is under extremely high temperatures, giving electrons enough energy to escape from their respective nucleus. A plasma environment is composed of positively charged ions and negatively charged electrons.