Solar Orbiter captures the sharpest images of the Sun: see them here

The Sun is a star located in the center of our solar system and is the main source of light and heat for Earth. This star is a giant sphere composed primarily of hydrogen (about 74%) and helium (about 24%), with small amounts of other elements. such as oxygen, carbon, neon and iron.

Furthermore, the Sun is essential for life on Earth, since its light and heat allow photosynthesis in plants and regulate the climate and the seasons. For this reason, the Solar Orbiter mission, a joint project between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, has managed to capture the most detailed images of the visible surface of this sphere ever obtained.

These new observations promise to provide valuable information about the complex magnetic and dynamic processes that take place in the Sun, fundamental to understanding its impact on the solar system.

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Images of the Sun never seen before

On March 22, 2023, 74 million kilometers away from the Sun, Solar Orbiter used two of its sophisticated instruments, the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) and the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI), to capture these stunning images.

ESA/NASA

The observations, which were recently processed and published, show in detail the outer layers of the Sun, including its visible surface, known as the photosphere, and the corona, its ultrahot atmosphere. The PHI, in particular, managed to capture complete images of the photosphere with unprecedented resolution. This region of the Sun, with temperatures ranging between 4,500 and 6,000 degrees Celsius, It is where most of the sunlight that reaches Earth originates.

These images show sunspots, dark areas driven by intense magnetic fields. that interrupt the flow of heat from the interior of the Sun to its surface. Some of these spots reach dimensions greater than the size of the Earth. These surprising photos were released by the European Space Agency (ESA) in conjunction with NASA.

Photos revealed the power of solar magnetism

In addition to visible light images, PHI generated magnetic maps, also called magnetograms, that reveal the direction and concentration of magnetic fields around sunspots. These data are essential for scientists, since they allow us to infer how these fields affect the activity of the corona, where temperatures reach a million degrees Celsius.

According to Solar Orbiter project scientist Daniel Müller, these high-resolution maps are essential for understanding how small- and large-scale magnetic processes interact on the Sun. “These images give us a unique perspective to unravel the dynamic nature of the solar magnetic field and its influence on the solar atmosphere,” Müller explained in the ESA article.

ESA/NASA

Another notable achievement was the creation of a “shorthand”, a map showing the speeds and directions of material that moves in the photosphere. Areas marked in blue indicate movement toward Solar Orbiter, while red areas indicate regions moving away. These motion patterns help understand how plasma behaves around sunspots, in sync with the Sun’s rotation.

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Why is the Sun’s corona so hot?

The EUI instrument allowed scientists to analyze the solar corona, where temperatures are significantly higher than in the photosphere. This mystery has intrigued astrophysicists for decades. EUI images show how the corona’s hot plasma interacts with sunspots, providing clues to the mechanisms that fuel these extreme temperatures.

To obtain these high-resolution images, Solar Orbiter had to rotate repeatedly, capturing different sections of the Sun in a mosaic made up of 25 individual images. NASA’s Solar Orbiter and Parker Solar Probe are studying the Sun during the peak of its 11-year solar cycle, a phase known as solar maximum.

During this period, the Sun’s magnetic poles reverse, and its activity reaches maximum levels, characterized by an increase in the appearance of sunspots and plasma explosions called coronal mass ejections. These ejecta, along with solar storms, can have significant effects on Earth, from disrupting GPS communications to generating spectacular auroras. In addition, they represent a challenge for satellites and future manned missions to deep space.

This mission is a closer encounter with the Sun

As Solar Orbiter continues to capture unprecedented images, the Parker Solar Probe prepares for a historic approach to the Sun on December 24. The spacecraft will approach just 6.2 million kilometers from the solar surface, sailing through plasma plumes and intense magnetic fields.

Both missions work together to answer fundamental questions about the Sun, such as what drives the solar wind and why the corona is significantly hotter than the surface. These observations not only contribute to scientific knowledge, but also have practical applications in space weather prediction. and in the protection of technologies on Earth and in orbit.

“We are seeing the Sun with a level of detail that we could only imagine before. “These images represent a crucial advance in our understanding of the star that supports life on our planet,” said NOAA researcher Mark Miesch.