New High-Resolution Solar Images Unveil Sun's Dynamic Features
On March 22, 2023, the Solar Orbiter mission captured the highest-resolution images of the sun’s visible surface ever recorded. These detailed views reveal sunspots, plasma movements, and intricate magnetic field patterns, offering heliophysicists valuable insights into the sun’s mysteries.
The Solar Orbiter, a collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, orbits the sun at an average distance of 26 million miles. Using instruments like the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) and Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI), the spacecraft delivered unprecedented snapshots of the sun’s dynamic layers, including the photosphere and the ultra-hot corona.
Key features include magnetic maps, or magnetograms, showcasing sunspots driven by the sun’s magnetic field. The PHI instrument also produced "tachograms," mapping the velocity of material on the sun's surface. Meanwhile, the EUI revealed the corona’s glowing plasma, which can reach temperatures of 1.8 million degrees Fahrenheit.
This imagery comes at a crucial time, as the sun reaches its solar maximum—a period of heightened activity within its 11-year cycle. This phase is marked by increased sunspots, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which generate space weather that affects Earth's technology, power grids, and satellites.
A "tachogram" shows the line-of-sight speed and direction of movement of material at the sun's surface, with blue marking material moving toward Solar Orbiter and red depicting what's moving away from it. European Space Agency
The Solar Orbiter’s close-up observations complement the Parker Solar Probe’s mission to study the sun’s environment. On December 24, the Parker probe will approach within 3.86 million miles of the solar surface, offering unparalleled access to plasma plumes and solar eruptions.
Together, these missions aim to deepen our understanding of solar dynamics, space weather, and the sun’s influence on Earth and beyond.
