Despite significant advancements in space science and the support of advanced technology, there remain mysteries that we have yet to explain. Not far away, even within our own Solar System, many enigmas persist.
Mysteries in the Solar System:
1. The Invisible Shield around Earth
In 1958, James Van Allen at the University of Iowa discovered a pair of radiation belts surrounding Earth, located about 40,000 km above the surface. These belts contain high-energy electrons and protons, which are particles emitted from solar activity. During periods of intense solar activity, known as solar storms, the quantity and energy levels of these particles increase significantly.
These high-energy particles and radiation are essentially invisible killers, capable of affecting satellites and electronic systems on Earth. However, most of them cannot reach the Earth’s surface; only some of the higher-energy particles can penetrate deeper into the atmosphere, but they all must stop at about 11,000 km above the ground.
Scientists believe there is an invisible barrier that prevents these energetic particles from entering Earth. It resembles an invisible energy shield found in science fiction films like Star Wars. Yet, the reason why Earth has such a shield remains an unanswered mystery. Many hypotheses suggest that Earth’s magnetic field is responsible for preventing high-energy particles from entering; however, this theory faces considerable opposition.
2. The Unusual Lateral Flight Phenomenon
Since humans began launching satellites and spacecraft into space, scientists have utilized the gravitational force of planets similarly to centrifugal force to provide additional thrust for space exploration. This is akin to tying a rock to a string and swinging it to throw the rock farther.
However, when applying this method, scientists observed a strange phenomenon. The speed of the spacecraft or satellite orbiting a planet is unstable, a phenomenon known as unusual lateral flight. Theoretically, the orbital speed should either increase or decrease steadily with a constant acceleration, as calculated by scientists.
In practice, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, launched into Earth’s orbit in 1999, sometimes exhibited unusual acceleration and deceleration while orbiting Earth. Various hypotheses have been proposed, including the existence of residual dark matter in the Solar System, similar to a dense area of matter that cannot be observed. As the spacecraft passes through this area, it slows down, akin to a bullet transitioning from air to a liquid environment.
3. The Great Red Spot on Jupiter
Upon first observing Jupiter, scientists discovered a mysterious large red spot in the planet’s atmosphere, large enough for two Earths to fit within it, which continues to move across Jupiter’s atmosphere. To this day, scientists have yet to determine what it is, only that it has existed for a very long time.
Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain its nature, formation, and why it is so large and red like brick. Many scientists believe it to be a colossal storm formed a long time ago, absorbing smaller storms along its path—similar to a mini black hole that continues to exist and grow.
The red color of the storm is attributed to materials on Jupiter’s surface being drawn into the storm. However, another hypothesis suggests that sunlight reflects off certain chemicals in Jupiter’s atmosphere, such as ammonia and acetylene, giving it a red hue. Currently, this mysterious red spot continues to move and grow larger.
4. Weather on Saturn’s Moon Titan
Titan is Saturn’s only moon, and interestingly, it experiences seasons similar to Earth. Each season on Titan lasts about 7 Earth years, as Saturn takes 29 years to complete one orbit around the Sun. The most recent seasonal change on Titan occurred in 2009 when the Northern Hemisphere transitioned from winter to spring while the Southern Hemisphere concluded summer.
However, in May 2012, during autumn in Titan’s Southern Hemisphere, scientists detected images of a massive vortex with a diameter of up to 300 km. This occurrence should not happen under the warm conditions prevalent in the Southern Hemisphere at that time.
Using spectral analysis, scientists found signs of frozen hydrogen cyanide (HCN) particles within the vortex’s atmosphere. To form these frozen HCN particles, temperatures would need to be at least 100 degrees Celsius lower than normal, indicating a puzzling weather reversal on Titan.
Currently, scientists cannot explain this mystery, and no hypotheses have been proposed, as very few planets exhibit seasonal distribution similar to Earth. Moreover, this phenomenon is exceedingly unique, raising concerns among scientists about the possibility of similar events occurring on Earth.
5. Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays
Cosmic rays with high energy, unlike radiation from the Sun, remain one of the mysteries that scientists are still investigating. To date, we do not know where these cosmic rays originate or why they possess such high energy.
On Earth, scientists have also recorded these cosmic rays hitting our atmosphere directly. However, thanks to the invisible shield, these rays do not affect humans or electronic devices on the Earth’s surface. These cosmic rays carry the highest energy particles we have ever observed in the universe.
One hypothesis suggests that these cosmic rays originate from massive explosions resulting from the formation, collapse, or collisions of giant stars outside the Milky Way. However, observations show that the occurrence of these cosmic rays does not coincide with any observable cosmic phenomena.
(to be continued)
