The Solar Orbiter spacecraft has taken unique high-resolution images of the Sun
Kyiv • UNN
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft has taken detailed images of the Sun from a distance of 77 million km. The mission, launched in 2020, aims to study the magnetic activity of the Sun.
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft has impressed scientists and space enthusiasts with a new detailed image of the Sun. This was reported by UNN with reference to the European Space Agency (ESA).
Details
On March 9, 2025, at a distance of about 77 million kilometers from the Sun, the Solar Orbiter spacecraft was oriented to point to different regions of the Sun in a 5 x 5 grid. In each direction, the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) instrument took six high-resolution images and two wide-angle images.
The sun looks like a warm yellow sphere with a surface covered in messy sunbeams. The yellow glow extends to the edges of the image, with some regions brighter than others. Many bright yellow arcs stand out from a wide band around the Sun's equator.
A darker region stands out on an approximately horizontal line near the Sun's south pole. Bright arcs and slightly darker matter can also be seen along the edges of the solar luminary.
Reference
Solar Orbiter is an international collaborative space mission between ESA and NASA. The Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) installed on it is operated under the direction of the Royal Observatory of Belgium (ROB).
The mission was launched by an Atlas V rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on February 10, 2020.
The spacecraft is to approach the Sun every five months. Approaches are planned to re-study the same areas of the solar atmosphere. Solar Orbiter will be able to observe the accumulation of magnetic activity in the atmosphere, which can lead to powerful solar flares or emissions.
Addition
The Webb telescope was able to capture Neptune's auroras in stunning infrared detail for the first time. Auroral activity is located in the planet's mid-latitudes, rather than at the poles.
The Blue Ghost spacecraft took high-resolution images of the sunset from the Moon. NASA hopes that they will help to reveal the mystery of the strange haze that was first observed on the Moon in the 1960s.
