SPACE — The total solar eclipse in August 2017 left bow waves in the Earth's upper atmosphere, like a boat sailing through water. <br />On August 21, researchers from MIT's Haystack Observatory and the University of Tromsø in Norway were able to find "the first unambiguous evidence" of atmospheric bow-waves. <br />The team published their findings in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. <br />The bow-wave theory says that a total solar eclipse will create high-pressure pockets under the moon's shadow that then slice through low-pressure air as the path of totality moves across the planet. These air pockets then generate small bow waves in the atmosphere. <br />During the August eclipse, the scientists collected data from around 2,000 satellite sensors placed across North America. <br />They detected tiny bow waves in Earth's ionosphere, the section of the atmosphere that begins 37 miles above the surface. <br />The researchers said their study, "reveals complex interconnections between the Sun, Moon and Earth's neutral atmosphere and ionosphere."
