Sun

Set your filtered sights on the Sun

25 June 2024 Mark Armstrong

Summer is the season for a spot of solar observing and sunspots, probably the Sun’s most fascinating phenomena, are easier to see than you might think.

‘Death star’ caught in the act of devouring one of its own

4 May 2023 Astronomy Now

For the first time, astronomers catch an aging star in the act of devouring one of its own, brightening as it consumed a Jupiter-size world

Solar Orbiter launched, promises first looks at sun’s hidden poles

11 February 2020 Astronomy Now

ESA’s Solar Orbiter begins its mission to study the Sun from a unique vantage point: an eventually tilted orbit that allows a look at the star’s poles.

Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope dazzles with first light images

29 January 2020 Astronomy Now

First light images from the 4-metre Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope are the sharpest ever achieved from the ground, hinting at discoveries to come.

Magnetized plasma jets likely mechanism for heating Sun’s corona

17 November 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found evidence for a complex mechanism that may explain how the Sun’s outer atmosphere, or corona, is driven to such extreme temperatures.

How to safely observe Mercury crossing the Sun on 11 November

7 November 2019 Ade Ashford

On Monday, 11 November 2019 just after 12:30pm GMT, suitably equipped observers in the British Isles can witness the start of a 3.7-hour spectacle that hasn’t been seen for three-and-a-half years — the silhouette of innermost planet Mercury crossing the face of the Sun. Here’s our online guide to observing this fascinating and comparatively rare event in complete safety.

Set your filtered sights on the Sun

‘Death star’ caught in the act of devouring one of its own

Solar Orbiter launched, promises first looks at sun’s hidden poles

Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope dazzles with first light images

Magnetized plasma jets likely mechanism for heating Sun’s corona

How to safely observe Mercury crossing the Sun on 11 November

Parker Solar Probe heading for third close pass by Sun

Parker Solar Probe makes second close pass by Sun

Parker probe now closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft

Parker Solar Probe launched on historic mission to ‘touch the sun’