A NASA instrument on the International Space Station has finished a successful mission showing how dynamic Earth’s atmosphere really is.
The Atmospheric Waves Experiment, known as AWE, was powered down on May 21 after more than two years of observations. From its perch outside the station, the instrument watched airglow — faint colorful light in the upper atmosphere — to trace atmospheric gravity waves as they moved upward toward the edge of space.
Weather with a long reach
These waves can begin with strong winds over mountains or energetic weather systems below. AWE helped researchers see how ripples from the lower atmosphere can travel upward and affect space weather, the changing conditions that can influence satellites, navigation and communications.
NASA says the instrument captured more than 80 million nighttime infrared images during its 30-month stay on the station. Researchers studied wave signatures from major terrestrial events and learned more about how different kinds of weather produce different atmospheric responses. Joe Westlake, director of NASA’s Heliophysics Division, described the atmosphere as a living ocean in the sky rather than a simple ceiling.
A practical picture of a connected planet
The good news is that understanding this connection can make space operations safer and smarter. If scientists can better map how Earth’s lower atmosphere helps shape space weather, they can improve models used by satellite operators, communications systems and future missions.
It is also a beautiful reminder that the planet is one connected system. Something that begins as motion in the air below can leave a measurable signature far above the clouds, where a space-station instrument quietly turns that motion into knowledge.
Source: NASA, reporting on the completion of the Atmospheric Waves Experiment data-collection phase and its study of atmospheric gravity waves and space weather.
