NASA let out some further news on its Van Allen probes – see http://tallbloke.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/nasas-van-allen-probes-reveal-… … and it is only 3 months since their launch. They are providing scientists with unexpected information. The Van Allen belts that surround the Earth have been seen to be affected by recent ejections of plasma from the Sun.
See also www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/12/121207100912.htm and www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/rbsp/news/belt-dynamics.html