New images of the Sun obtained by the Solar Orbiter spacecraft provide the highest resolution images of our star's surface ever seen. These images reveal solar spots and the constantly moving ionized gases, or plasma, in great detail.
These images offer heliophysicists an unprecedented opportunity to explore the Sun's secrets more deeply than ever before.
The Solar Orbiter, a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, was launched into space in February 2020 and observes the Sun from an average distance of 42 million kilometers.
The developed images showcase dynamic features of the Sun, including magnetic field movements and the glowing of the ultra-hot solar corona (outer atmosphere).
These new images were taken on March 22, 2023, using the Solar Orbiter's two imaging devices: the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) and the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI).
The images taken from 74 million kilometers away reveal detailed views of the Sun's surface radiation, magnetic fields, and hot plasma flows.
While the Solar Orbiter focuses on taking the highest resolution photos close to the Sun's surface, NASA's Parker Solar Probe is set to make the closest pass ever in space history, moving even closer to the Sun.
Both missions aim to help us understand the sources of the Sun's magnetic fields and the factors triggering solar winds.
The newly obtained images highlight the complexity of the Sun's different layers.
Allowing for a better understanding of the Sun's activities With the PHI device, the Solar Orbiter has provided the highest resolution images of the Sun's surface, known as the photosphere, ever obtained.
Sunspots in the photosphere are formed when the Sun's magnetic fields rise to the surface, and these areas are cooler than the surrounding areas, emitting less light.
The Solar Orbiter also provides new data, such as magnetic and velocity maps, showing how plasma moves on the Sun's surface and highlighting regions where the Sun's magnetic fields are concentrated.
The EUI device, which also seeks to answer the question of why the temperature of the Sun's corona is much higher than that of the photosphere, reveals that the hot plasma in the corona originates from the sunspots in the photosphere.
The new images will enable scientists to better understand the Sun's activities during this period, which marks the peak of the Sun's 11-year cycle.
