• Scientists explain mysterious magnetic phenomenon on the moon after 60 years
• Waves result from unexpected plasma interaction with the lunar surface

Scientists have managed to understand the cause of the strange magnetic waves that sometimes appear above the Moon, which had puzzled researchers for nearly six decades, according to SciTechDaily.

It is known that the Moon lacks a strong magnetic field to protect it, allowing the solar wind to hit its surface directly, strip away some material, and electrically charge the dust covering it.

Despite this, scientists have observed for about 60 years sudden increases in magnetic field strength in certain areas of the Moon, sometimes reaching up to ten times the normal level.

These phenomena, known as "lunar external magnetic enhancements," remained unexplained since their discovery.

In a new study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, researcher Shu-Hua Lai and her colleagues from National Central University in Taiwan suggested that these waves arise from an unexpected interaction between the solar wind and small magnetic regions on the Moon’s surface, similar to strange waves sometimes seen in Earth's atmosphere.

Using advanced computer models, the team simulated the phenomenon and found that the magnetic waves could form and spread to high altitudes above the Moon’s surface, explaining the data collected by spacecraft over the years.

The results confirm that this new approach to understanding the interaction between lunar dust and magnetic fields may solve a 60-year-old mystery and could also help in studying the environment around other weakly magnetized planets, such as Mars.