What's A Space Hurricane? Researchers Observe The Phenomenon For The First Time

Researchers of a new study observed a phenomenon now known as a "space hurricane" for the first time, confirming its existence.

It was in 2014 when four Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites spotted what would turn out to be the first observation of a space hurricane. This wasn't like the hurricanes that we know, with strong winds and rainfall that cause damages to property and life.

This particular phenomenon, Shandong University explained in a news release, was a 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) "cyclone-like auroral spot" that rotated above the north magnetic pole. It had "near zero-flow" in the center and lasted for more than eight hours, the researchers wrote in their paper.

"These features are very similar with the hurricane in low atmosphere, thus, the team analogically names it as 'space hurricane,'" Shandong University explained.

Simply put, a space hurricane is a geomagnetic disturbance in the Earth's upper atmosphere that resembles the hurricanes we know, except it is comprised of a swirling mass of plasma and it rained electrons instead of water, the University of Reading explained in a news release.

In an illustration of the space hurricane provided by study first author, Prof. Zhang Qinghe of Shandong University, one can see the aurora-like phenomenon looking much like a hurricane on our planet's upper atmosphere.

Hurricanes have also been observed in the lower atmosphere of other planets such as Mars, Saturn and Jupiter, but it has never been observed in a planet's upper atmosphere, the researchers said.

"Until now, it was uncertain that space plasma hurricanes even existed, so to prove this with such a striking observation is incredible," Prof. Mike Lockwood, study co-author and space scientist at the University of Reading, said in the university's news release.

"Tropical storms are associated with huge amounts of energy, and these space hurricanes must be created by unusually large and rapid transfer of solar wind energy and charged particles into the Earth's upper atmosphere," he added, noting that the find suggests that the phenomenon may actually be widespread since plasma and magnetic fields also exist in other planets' atmosphere.

What's more, it also shows how such disturbances may still occur even in "extremely quiet geomagnetic conditions," Shandong University said.

Apart from observing a space hurricane for the first time and shedding light on the relationship between planets and space, the researchers' work also shows the importance of monitoring space weather, according to the University of Reading.

As Shandong University explained, a space hurricane may also result in space weather effects such as disturbances in high-frequency radio and errors in satellite navigation.

The study is published in the journal Nature.