The sun is a very dynamic place, a constantly churning ball of immense energy that can put on dazzling displays of flares, sunspots and the like. But did you know that it also rains there?
When it rains on the sun
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Category Archives: Sun
New computer simulations show Earth’s spaghetti-like magnetosphere
Supercomputer simulation showing the tangled magnetosphere surrounding Earth. Credit: OLCF
A new computer simulation is showing Earth’s magnetosphere in amazing detail – and it looks a lot like a huge pile of tangled spaghetti (with the Earth as a meatball). Or perhaps a cosmic version of modern art…
See Universe Today for the full article.
Beautiful photo of Sun with floating prominence
Just came across another amazing image of our sun, taken by photographer Alan Friedman; it shows a close-up view of the sun’s surface and limb, with incredible detail, most notably a detached prominence which floats above the sun’s surface like a wispy cirrus cloud (in appearance only, of course). Larger version here. Beautiful.
Credit: Alan Friedman
The surface of the Sun in blistering detail
Ok, again not a planetary related post specifically, but this is another great photo, a new high-resolution image of the surface of the Sun. The detail is amazing, including the sunspot in the lower left. More info and larger image here.
Credit: K. Reardon (Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, INAF) IBIS, DST, NSO