An upper layer of Earth's atmosphere recently collapsed in an unexpectedly large contraction, the sheer size of which has scientists scratching their heads, NASA announced Thursday.
"This is the biggest contraction of the thermosphere in at least 43 years," said John Emmert of the Naval Research Lab. "It's a Space Age record."
"Something is going on that we do not understand," Emmert said.
The thermosphere lies high above the Earth's surface, close to where our planet meets the edge of space. It ranges in altitude from 55 miles (90 km) to 370 miles (600 km) above the ground. At this height, satellites and meteors fly and auroras shine.
Great, 2012, here we come.
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