The area that safeguards orbiting satellites in Middle Earth Orbits is an area called the Van Allen Belt.  This is a reduced radiation zone around the earth and the cause of this zone has been discussed by scientists for 50 years. For four decades it was believed that the zone was safe due to radio waves from space that cleared the area of harmful radiation.  NASA scientists believe differently and identify the cause as lightning.  Researchers believe that the cleansing radio waves are caused by lightning to create the protective zone.  The radio waves interact with particles within the radiation belt, zap some of the energy, change the energy direction and prevent the radiation particles to bounce back into space.  Without the cleansing aspect of the lightning, a large, damaging radiation belt would occur, preventing satellites to orbit in the Van Allen Belt. In the future, scientists may be able to remove other damaging belts from around the earth. Finally, In the old days, attempts to locate water, was called dowsing and a dowsing rod, divining rod or witching rod was used.  The rod was a Y shaped twig that supposedly jumped upon above ground contact with a water source.  My grandfather believed this process and would whittle the rod to educate us as to its benefits. Not that interested, we would use the rods as “apple launchers.”  Jamming an apple on the rod and whipping it like a fishing rod would propel the apple.  My brother Kevin holds the record for hitting two heads with one apple from a “launcher.”  Kevin first hit Pumpkin Head Hulick and the apple ricocheted into Bob “Head” Krestel.