Earth looks like such a solid and stable blue marble from outer space. But looks can be deceiving. Our planet is actually quietly leaking the equivalent of about 90 metric tons of plasma into outer space every day, according to new data collected by the European Space Agency's Cluster mission. Plasma is an invisible, electrically charged gas that forms in the upper atmosphere when air particles are heated by the Sun's ultraviolet rays. These particles travel along Earth's magnetic field lines and are able to escape Earth's gravity, but most remain trapped in an enormous bubble around the Earth known as the plasmasphere that ends about 16,000 miles outward from the planet.
via The Verge - All Posts http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/2/4486788/earth-is-steadily-leaking-plasma-out-into-the-universe
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