133_Days_on_the_Sun(1080p)

1 year ago
8

This video chronicles solar activity from Aug. 12 to Dec. 22, 2022, as
captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). From its orbit in
space around Earth, SDO has steadily imaged the Sun in 4Kx 4K resolution
for nearly 13 years. This information has enabled countless new discoveries
about the workings of our closest star and how it influences the solar
system.
With a triad of instruments, SDO captures an image of the Sun every 0.75
seconds. The Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument alone
captures images every 12 seconds at 10 differernt wavelengths of light. This
133-day time lapse showcases photos taken at a wavelength of 17.1
nanometers, which is an extreme-ultraviolet wavelength that shows the
Sun's outermost atmospheric layer: the corona. Compiling images taken 108
seconds apart, the movie condenses 133 days, or about four months, of
solar observations into 59 minutes. The video shows bright active regions
passing across the face of the Sun as it rotates. The Sun rotates
approximately once every 27 days. The loops extending above the bright
regions are magnetic fields that have trapped hot, glowing plasma. These
bright regions are also the source of solar flares, which appear as bright
flashes as magnetic fields snap together in a process called magnetic
reconnection.
12 3:02
While SD0 has kept an unblinking eye pointed toward the Sun, there have
been a few moments it missed. Some of the dark frames in the video are
caused by Earth or the Moon eclipsing SDO as they pass between the
spacecraft and the Sun. Other blackouts are caused by instrumentation
being down or data errors. SDO transmits 1.4 terabytes of data to the
ground every day. The images where the Sun is off-center were observed
when SDO was calibrating its instruments.
X
SDO and other NASA missions will continue to watch our Sun in the years to
come, providing further insights about our place in space and information
to keep our astronauts and assets safe.
Credit: NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center
The music is a continuous mix from Lars Leonhard's "Geometric Shapes"
album, courtesy of the artist.
Scott Wiessinger (PAO): Lead Producer
Tom Bridgman (SVS): Lead Visualizer
Scott Wiessinger (PAO): Editor
Video Description:
This video can be freely shared and downloaded at
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/1 4263. While the video in its entirety can be shared
without permission, the music and some individual imagery may have beern
obtained through permission and may not be excised or remixed in other
products. Specific details on such imagery may be found here:
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 14263. For more information on NASA's media
guidelines, visit https:/lnasa. gov/multimedia/guidelines.
On the left side of the frame is the full circle of the Sun. It appears in a
golden yellow color, but splotchy and with thin yellow wisps extending from

Loading comments...