Home > Ephemeris Program, NASA > 01/18/11 – Ephemeris – Antimatter from thunderstorms

01/18/11 – Ephemeris – Antimatter from thunderstorms

January 18, 2011

Tuesday, January 18th.  The sun will rise at 8:14.  It’ll be up for 9 hours and 17 minutes, setting at 5:31.   The moon, 1 day before full, will set at 7:51 tomorrow morning.

The Fermi gamma ray satellite has detected gamma rays from an unusual source.  The Earth.  Specifically from thunder storms.  That isn’t the weird part.  The gamma rays produced in the storm interact with electrons in the upper atmosphere producing a positron-electron pair that tangles with the earth’s magnetic field where Fermi detects it.  Positrons are anti-electrons which can be produced artificially on the earth, and are used in medical PET scans.  While scientists know how lightning is produced in a general way they do not know deep down the exact mechanism that produces lightning.  That goes for thunderstorms on the earth and lightning in the atmospheres of the other planets.  Lightning is still a mysterious phenomenon.

* Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Categories: Ephemeris Program, NASA
  1. richard kuschell's avatar
    richard kuschell
    January 18, 2011 at 10:56 am

    Check out the display case at the Grand Traverse District Library. The Grand Traverse Astronomical Society will be doing one of the cases. Interesting stuff will be on display until the end of February

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