Chinese scientists reported that Russia and China are working together on a project to ionize the Earth's atmosphere for scientific research. Both countries have already conducted experiments to heat the top of the air envelope at an altitude of 500 kilometers. The South China Morning Post reports that the project may also be used for military purposes, although researchers are unaware of this.
As the newspaper writes, the experiments were carried out using the multifunctional radio complex "Sura", designed to study the ionosphere - a shell with a high density of free electrons. It is located near the city of Vasilsursk, 150 kilometers from Nizhny Novgorod. On June 7, electromagnetic disturbances were caused in the atmosphere over the European part of Russia, which affected an area of 126 thousand square kilometers. There were 10 times more negatively charged particles in this area than in the surrounding regions. On June 12, scientists achieved an increase in the temperature of the ionized gas by more than one hundred degrees Celsius.
Disturbances in the ionosphere were recorded by the Zhangheng-1 research satellite designed to monitor electromagnetic fields and waves in the atmosphere. Even a weak beam of radio emission can cause noticeable disturbances in the ionosphere, according to Chinese scientists. A similar phenomenon can be observed before earthquakes, which makes Zhangheng-1 suitable for predicting natural disasters.
Although scientists said they were unaware of the possible use of the results of the experiment for military purposes, the publication writes that disturbances in the ionosphere could disrupt the satellite communications of a potential enemy. Currently, China is building an analogue of the Russian Sura and the American HAARP, which will be able to ionize the atmosphere over the South China Sea.