New image reveal Sun’s surface in amazing detail
Looking directly at the Sun is impossible and capturing a clear image of it is even more difficult. However, new images of the star at the center of our solar system have been released showing its surface in extraordinary detail.
The images were captured by the Inouye Solar Telescope located in the US state of Hawaii. It is considered the world’s most powerful solar telescope and is capable of observing the Sun in unprecedented detail.
The telescope has captured images of the Sun before but these new photographs provide the most detailed views yet of the surface of our solar system’s star. A unique wing-like pattern can be seen across the Sun’s surface in the images.
According to scientists, this pattern is associated with the Sun’s magnetic field which is moving in a wave-like manner due to hot gases.
Closer look at Sun’s surface
The images reveal processes occurring on the Sun’s surface that may help explain a decades-old mystery: why the Sun’s outer atmosphere known as the corona is millions of times hotter than its visible surface. Experts say these are the highest-resolution images of the Sun’s surface ever captured.
In earlier observations, the telescope detected sand-like structures on the Sun’s surface making it appear as though grains of sand were being viewed under a microscope.
Each of these structures was roughly the size of France in terms of area but the new images reveal much greater detail. The new photographs show a distinctive pattern on the Sun’s surface associated with rapidly moving plasma.
Scientists have identified this pattern as Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities (KHIs). Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities have been observed on Earth during the formation of patterns in lakes, oceans and clouds. They have also been detected on Jupiter and Saturn but their presence on the Sun had not previously been confirmed.
Why Sun’s magnetic activity matters?
Solar activity particularly changes in the Sun’s magnetic fields can affect power grids, satellites, GPS positioning and global communications on Earth. These magnetic fields are generated by the Sun’s extremely hot plasma but scientists have not yet fully understood how they work.
Experts know that these magnetic fields can trigger sudden releases of enormous amounts of heat but exactly why this happens remains unclear.
The new images, however, provide clues that could help explain why the Sun’s visible surface has a temperature of around 6,000°C while its outer atmosphere can reach temperatures of millions of degrees Celsius.
