NASA probes black auroras from Alaska with twin rocket missions
NASA launched two suborbital sounding rockets from Alaska’s Poker Flat Research Range to study the electrical environment of auroras. The BADASS mission investigated black auroras by sending instruments up to about 360 km, while the GNEISS mission used a pair of rockets to map the currents in the aurora, effectively creating a 3D view of the plasma. The data aim to improve understanding of geomagnetic activity that can affect satellites and astronauts.