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By combining observations from the ground and in space, researchers have observed a plume of low-energy plasma particles that essentially hitches a ride along magnetic field lines - streaming from Earth's lower atmosphere up to the point, tens of thousands of kilometers above the surface, where the planet's magnetic field connects with that of the sun. In this region, which the scientists call the "merging point," the presence of cold, dense plasma slows magnetic reconnection, blunting the sun's effects on Earth. [Source: MIT News]
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