SDO captures impressive view of holes in the Sun’s super-heated corona

24 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Between 4 and 6 September, NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft captured extreme ultraviolet images of a large, well-developed “hole” in the Sun’s corona followed by the formation of another, larger hole nearby. Coronal holes are dark, cooler regions of the Sun’s outer atmosphere associated with open magnetic field lines where electrically charged particles making up the solar wind readily stream out into space. Brighter areas in this view are regions where magnetic activity is strong.

Two huge openings in the Sun’s corona are seen in this deep ultraviolet view captured by the Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft. Click the image for a short movie showing the motion of the coronal holes. Image: NASA/GSFC/Solar Dynamics Observatory

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Sun emits a mid-level solar flare on 24 August

24 August 2015 Astronomy Now

The Sun emitted a mid-level solar flare, peaking at 8:33am BST on 24 August 2015. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured the image of the event shown here. Although harmful radiation from such a flare cannot pass through Earth’s atmosphere, intense flares can disturb the atmosphere in the layer where GPS and communications signals travel.