Artist's Concept of the THEMIS Main Orbits (IMAGE)

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

Artist's Concept of the THEMIS Main Orbits

Caption

This is an artist's concept of the THEMIS main orbits, represented by red ovals. Blue lines represent Earth's magnetic field over the night side. The white flash represents energy released during substorms, which cause the night side magnetic field to act like a giant slingshot, propelling electrons toward Earth.

Credit

NASA

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