NASA | SDO's Ultra-high Definition View of 2012 Venus Transit

On February 11, 2010, the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) was launched, marking a remarkable achievement in spacecraft design for solar study. Over its intended five-year mission, SDO's focus has been to delve into the intricacies of the sun's atmosphere and magnetic field. By doing so, it aims to enhance our comprehension of the sun's impact on Earth's atmospheric chemistry and climate dynamics.

A testament to its technological prowess, SDO captures imagery with a resolution eight times finer than high-definition television. This endeavor yields an impressive daily data output of over one terabyte. One of SDO's notable achievements occurred on June 5, 2012, when it documented an extraordinary solar event—the transit of Venus across the sun's surface. This phenomenon transpires in pairs, spaced eight years apart, with intervals of either 105 or 121 years between pairs. The prior transit took place in 2004, and the subsequent occurrence is not anticipated until 2117.

The captivating visuals presented here are assembled from diverse wavelengths of extreme ultraviolet light and a segment of the visible spectrum. In this composition, the sun is portrayed in various hues: the red shade signifies the 304 angstrom ultraviolet, the golden hue corresponds to 171 angstrom, the magenta tint showcases 1700 angstrom, and the orange tint represents filtered visible light. The 304 and 171 angstrom views reveal the sun's atmospheric layer, which remains hidden from our perception within the visible spectrum.