An Amazing CME Erupts from the
Sun Captured August 31, 2012 by NASA's Solar Dynamics
Observatory NASA Goddard Space Flight Center via Flickr
We’ve
covered some pretty amazing coronal mass ejections (CMEs) here on PopSci, but
we might have to crown this one the best yet. Blasting
forth from the solar surface at 900 miles per second on August 31, it was
captured in all of its tendril-esque glory by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
(SDO). If the image doesn’t look real, rest assured that it is. But the SDO
clearly doesn’t capture imagery of the sun in the same way the human eye does.
This image is a blended version of the 304 and 171 angstrom wavelengths. I
couldn’t begin to tell you why those are the proper wavelengths to capture this
sort of thing, but I will endorse the choice. This is one magnificent image of
our local star. Oh, and though you would’ve heard about it by now if this
particular CME posed any threat to the home planet, you can also rest assure it
does not. It was not directed toward Earth, though it was close; it interfered
with our magnetosphere enough to cause auroras to appear on the night of
September 3. Which is as close as you want a solar eruption like this to get.
0 comments:
Post a Comment