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Solar flares cause radio blackouts at frequencies below 30 MHz due to them ionizing the Earth's ionosphere.—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2024 Usually, this atmospheric layer reflects high-frequency radio waves, bouncing them from their source to their destination, but if the flare ionizes that layer, these waves become degraded, or are completely absorbed, leading to a radio blackout.—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2024 While direct damage to DNA can be catastrophic, ionizing radiation can also cause damage in other ways.—Tom Hawking, Popular Science, 24 Oct. 2024 This disk whirls around at such a rapid pace that the material within it glows white-hot and ionizes, transforming into a dense plasma roiling with magnetic fields.—Saima S. Iqbal, Scientific American, 23 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for ionize
Word History
Etymology
ion + -ize, after German ionisiren (now ionisieren) or French ioniser
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