Are you sure you know what the Sun looks like? If you think so, let me tell you that space science has discovered a new way of capturing astronomical images. No, they are not the same awesome pictures of the Sun we are used to seeing, they show the Sun’s corona – which the solar surface’s bright light prevented from seeing it before.
This possibility of having access to the Sun’s corona has open windows for studying different phenomena that could lead to the prevention of solar storms effects on Earth. In this article we will explain how this pictures happened and how they translate for the future.
Space science research on the Sun
For many years, it has been impossible to have a clear image of the Sun. Even though the telescopes used are advanced technology, they couldn’t stop the Earth’s atmosphere from distorsioning what they could capture.
Don’t think this hasn’t been solved… they developed a new advanced technology called adaptive optics (AO). Thanks to this, scientists could see parts of the Sun never seen before with so much detail, mostly the Sun’s corona.
What’s that corona?
It is located in the outer part of the Sun and it is made out of a hot electrically charged gas called hot plasma.
As this corona is the furthest part from the Sun, the most logical thing to happen is the corona was the coldest part. I’m afraid it isn’t, it is totally the opposite, it’s the hottest one!
If we compare it to the solar surface which has 6,000 Kelvin, the Sun’s corona has more than 1 million Kelvin. This is so unbelievable that scientists can’t figure out why this happens. So, they called this phenomenon ‘coronal heating problem’.
Adaptive optics, the new technology
Even though we may have heard about the numerous telescopes NASA has, for example the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), it wasn’t enough for this situation. So, scientists used something they already utilised with stars, planets and solar surface, adaptive optics technology.
This technology helps fix distortions caused by the atmosphere. How it works you may be wondering, they used special mirrors that change their shapes so that they can adjust the image in real time to see it clearly. It is similar to an Instagram filter, kind of…
Phenomena never seen from Earth
Due to this new possibility of observing parts of the the star in more detail, scientists can see what happens in the Sun’s corona more clearly.
One of the phenomena they could have seen is coronal rains. This happens when the hot plasma gets cold and falls into the solar surface again, following the lines of the Sun’s magnetic field.
Other phenomena are loops which are complex shapes found in the corona’s plasma, related to solar explosions projected to space – affecting Earth.
Positive aspects for the future
This closer and clear access to the Sun’s corona is a possibility for scientists to study phenomena like coronal rains or plasma structures, which can make them understand the Sun better and prevent solar storms effects on Earth.
This might not seem quite an impressive discovery for you if you are not into space science, but it really is. The fact that these new images can be a solution for some Earth issues, is a remarkable discovery for our future.
For little though it seems, never underestimate any achievement because it can lead to new studies or solutions that can become of huge importance in the future. Who knows if a scientist will use these images or the technology used to capture them for something bigger?