The doughnut-shaped region of charged particles surrounding the Earth are called which belts?

The doughnut-shaped region of charged particles surrounding the Earth are called which belts?

• A. Oort cloud
• B. Van Allen belts
• C. Kuiper belt
• D. Asteroid belt

Answer: (B)

Charged particles get trapped by Earth’s magnetic field and follow its lines, looping around the planet and drifting around the equator. This creates two doughnut-shaped regions encircling Earth, where high-energy particles are confined—these are the Van Allen belts. There are inner and outer belts at different distances above the surface, formed because the magnetic field channels and mirrors the particles along its lines. The other options refer to distant parts of the solar system: the Oort cloud and Kuiper belt are far beyond Earth, while the asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter. They are not surrounding Earth or trapping particles in the planet’s magnetic field.

Charged particles get trapped by Earth’s magnetic field and follow its lines, looping around the planet and drifting around the equator. This creates two doughnut-shaped regions encircling Earth, where high-energy particles are confined—these are the Van Allen belts. There are inner and outer belts at different distances above the surface, formed because the magnetic field channels and mirrors the particles along its lines.

The other options refer to distant parts of the solar system: the Oort cloud and Kuiper belt are far beyond Earth, while the asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter. They are not surrounding Earth or trapping particles in the planet’s magnetic field.