NASA scientists have discovered a mysterious ribbon around our solar system —- a stripe made of hydrogen —- that defies all current expectations about what the edge of the solar system might look like.
Richard Fisher, the director of NASA's Heliophysics Division, tells NPR's Guy Raz that this discovery is a big moment for the scientific community. "We thought we knew everything about everything, and it turned out that there were unknown unknowns."
Our solar system is encased in a sort of protective layer called the heliosphere, which shields us from harmful cosmic radiation. The heliosphere is made up of particles blown through space by solar winds —- if you can imagine the sun blowing a giant bubble around the planets, you'll have a pretty good idea of what it's like. Last year, NASA launched the Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission, or IBEX, which was designed to take a picture of the heliosphere. And according to Fisher, that picture did not conform to expectations.
NASA Discovers A Ring Around The Solar System : NPR
Richard Fisher, the director of NASA's Heliophysics Division, tells NPR's Guy Raz that this discovery is a big moment for the scientific community. "We thought we knew everything about everything, and it turned out that there were unknown unknowns."
Our solar system is encased in a sort of protective layer called the heliosphere, which shields us from harmful cosmic radiation. The heliosphere is made up of particles blown through space by solar winds —- if you can imagine the sun blowing a giant bubble around the planets, you'll have a pretty good idea of what it's like. Last year, NASA launched the Interstellar Boundary Explorer Mission, or IBEX, which was designed to take a picture of the heliosphere. And according to Fisher, that picture did not conform to expectations.
NASA Discovers A Ring Around The Solar System : NPR