This so-called "plasma sheath" acts as a mirror against electromagnetic signals under most conditions, cutting off radio communications with anything outside the vehicle.

The terahertz waves could easily penetrate the plasma sheath produced by a hypersonic weapon at 10 times the speed of sound or even faster “as if the black barrier does not exist,” South China ...

Returning spacecraft hit the atmosphere at over five times the speed of sound, generating a sheath of superheated ionized plasma that blocks radio communications during the critical minutes of ...

It is this plasma sheath that prevents radio communication. For manned spacecraft re-entering from orbit, the radio black out last a couple of minutes, creating sweaty palms for all concerned.

Around the plasma is a thin boundary layer called the sheath. Within the sheath, electrical current is carried not by negatively charged electrons, but instead by positively charged ions.

The plasma sheath, on the other hand, acts like an inductor, which resists changes in an electric current passing through it. When a capacitor and an inductor are paired together, they can form a ...

This article was originally published with the title “ Piercing the Plasma: Ideas to Beat the Communications Blackout of Reentry ” in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 301 No. 6 (December 2009 ...

The plasma sheath, on the other hand, acts like an inductor, which resists changes in an electric current passing through it. When a capacitor and an inductor are paired together, ...

Plasmoids and sheaths mean success or failure for solar eruptions Date: May 2, 2011 Source: Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) Summary: Our Sun experiences regular eruptions of material into space ...

In all plasma etch reactors, the abrupt end of the wafer surface creates inherent electrical discontinuities at the edge region, forming voltage gradients that bend the plasma sheath. This, in turn, ...