The Bermuda Triangle has been stirring the minds of scientists for many years. People still look for relatives who disappeared in this mysterious and enigmatic place – a place of physical terrestrial anomalies. However, there is one more place on the planet that can be compared with Bermuda in its uniqueness – the Brazilian magnetic anomaly, located closest to the surface of the Earth's crust.
The Gemini 4 spacecraft was the very crew that first detected such a natural radiation belt. Piloted by American astronauts, it carried out a series of experiments, among them an analysis of the radiation flux over Brazil, the identification of the highest concentration, and the use of non-electronic computing devices that help to determine the position of the anomalous zone more precisely.
On passing through this stretch of its path the Hubble space telescope practically went out of action – all its systems were disrupted and operation was stopped. It is not the only craft to have suffered from the influence of the BMA:
Being a “hole” in the Earth's magnetic field, the Brazilian magnetic anomaly is a direct threat to satellites, aircraft and spacecraft – equipment fails as a result of the radiation.
The amazing next door
This phenomenon lies off the coasts of Brazil and South Africa and is a natural radiation belt. The region is characterised by the influence of magnetic rays, whose concentration under ordinary conditions is observed only at altitudes above a thousand kilometres. The peculiarity of this anomalous zone is a failure of the protection of the Earth's magnetosphere and a disruption of the operation of all aircraft and instruments that come under the influence of this sector.The Gemini 4 spacecraft was the very crew that first detected such a natural radiation belt. Piloted by American astronauts, it carried out a series of experiments, among them an analysis of the radiation flux over Brazil, the identification of the highest concentration, and the use of non-electronic computing devices that help to determine the position of the anomalous zone more precisely.
On passing through this stretch of its path the Hubble space telescope practically went out of action – all its systems were disrupted and operation was stopped. It is not the only craft to have suffered from the influence of the BMA:
- in 2009, the crash of the Rio de Janeiro – Paris aircraft;
- the interplanetary station Phobos-Grunt.
Being a “hole” in the Earth's magnetic field, the Brazilian magnetic anomaly is a direct threat to satellites, aircraft and spacecraft – equipment fails as a result of the radiation.