How Does the Eclipse Affect Satellites? MIT Plans to Research
By Kendall Russell | August 21, 2017
The Millstone Hill radar facility at MIT Haystack Observatory in Westford, Massachusetts. Photo: MIT/Shun-Rong Zhang.
Atmospheric scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Haystack Observatory will investigate the effects of the eclipse on space weather. According to the researchers, the eclipse will generate waves called Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (TIDs) in the upper atmosphere. The eclipse will thus grant them the opportunity to learn more about the atmospheric response to space weather events such as geomagnetic storms, which could potentially disrupt satellite communications and navigation systems.
