February 2013: The Busy Sun

  • Released Tuesday, February 11, 2014
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Even near solar maximum, with sunspots dotting the photosphere, the Sun can look tranquil and serene in visible light. In the case of these images from the HMI instrument on the Solar Dynamics Observatory, the only obvious changes are the constant shimmering of the solar disk due to the bubbling of solar granulation.

But in ultraviolet light, in particular the 30.4 nanometer line of the helium ion, we see much more activity. Dark, wispy lines of cooler solar filaments (the term used for solar prominences when seen against the disk) stretch across the disk. The same structures, seen against the fainter glow of the solar corona, resemble slowly evolving flames on the limb of the Sun. Solar active regions surrounding the sunspots, appear bright in ultraviolet light.

The Sun in the light of singly-ionized helium at 30.4 nanometers.

4Kx4K full resolution frames of the Sun in the wavelength of singly-ionized helium.

Sunspots in visible light.

4Kx4K full resolution frames of the Sun in visible light.

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio, the SDO Science Team, and the Virtual Solar Observatory.

This page was originally published on Tuesday, February 11, 2014.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:51 PM EDT.

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