Caption: A cartoon of Earth's magnetic field.

Correct "Charge solar wind particle" to "Charged solar wind particles".

A key fact is that magnetic fields tend to cause charged particles to helix along magnetic field lines. This is because the magnetic force acts perpendicularly to the velocity.

Keywords: charged particles, Earth, Earth's magnetic field, helix, magnetic field, magnetic field lines, magnetic force, magnetic poles (magnetic north pole, magnetic south pole), magnetosphere, perpendicular, Van Allen radiation belts.

Credit/Permission: © David Jeffery, 2003 / Own work.
Image link: Itself.
Local file: local link: earth_magnetic_field.html.html.
File: Earth file: earth_magnetic_field.html.