What Are the Van Allen Radiation Belts?

You probably have heard of the Van Allen radiation belts, sometimes just called "radiation belts", but might be unclear what they are or what they do. That's okay, because there is a lot that scientists don't understand about them. For example, while the radiation belts are known to shrink and expand in response to the solar wind and solar storms, we can't predict how the belts will react to a given event. Sometimes the belts don't seem to change at all in response to what appears to be the same type of event that caused them to react in the past. Sometimes they swell to include regions containing satellites and the International Space Station... learn more

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