NASA | SDO: Three Years of Sun in Three Minutes
In the three years since it first provided images of the sun in the spring of 2010, NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) has had virtually unbroken coverage of the sun's rise toward solar maximum, the peak of solar activity in its regular 11-year cycle. This video shows those three years of the sun at a pace of two images per day.
SDO's Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) captures a shot of the sun every 12 seconds in 10 different wavelengths. The images shown here are based on a wavelength of 171 Angstroms, which is in the extreme ultraviolet range and shows solar material at around 600,000 Kelvin. In this wavelength it is easy to see the sun's 25-day rotation as well as how solar activity has increased over three years.
During the course of the video, the sun subtly increases and decreases in apparent size. This is because the distance between the SDO spacecraft and the sun varies over time. The image is, however, remarkably consistent and stable despite the fact that SDO orbits the Earth at 6,876 miles per hour and the Earth orbits the sun at 67,062 miles per hour.
Such stability is crucial for scientists, who use SDO to learn more about our closest star. These images have regularly caught solar flares and coronal mass ejections in the act, types of space weather that can send radiation and solar material toward Earth and interfere with satellites in space. SDO's glimpses into the violent dance on the sun help scientists understand what causes these giant explosions -- with the hopes of some day improving our ability to predict this space weather.
There are several noteworthy events that appear briefly in this video. They include the two partial eclipses of the sun by the moon, two roll maneuvers, the largest flare of this solar cycle, comet Lovejoy, and the transit of Venus.
-
11:28
Bearing
23 hours agoThe Sean P Diddy Combs Situation is INSANE
21.2K46 -
40:51
World Nomac
16 hours ago72 Hours in Kyoto and Osaka Japan
8.35K2 -
14:19
Degenerate Jay
1 day agoShould Solid Snake Ever Get Another Metal Gear Solid Game?
11.6K4 -
48:46
The Lou Holtz Show
15 hours agoThe Lou Holtz Show Ep 17 | Linda McMahon on WWE, Small Business, and Leadership #podcast
7.29K2 -
1:35:09
Atlantic Underground Podcast
1 day agoGoogle Eyed Monster a Whistleblower Story
9.1K1 -
LIVE
Right Side Broadcasting Network
4 days agoLIVE REPLAY: President Trump Holds a Rally in Indiana, Pennsylvania - 9/23/24
5,265 watching -
3:11:25
The Quartering
13 hours agoTrump Rally Post Show, Kamala Harris Desperation, Diddy Mess Gets Worse & WW3
160K80 -
1:40:45
Fresh and Fit
12 hours agoHow To Make Money Streaming
95.4K33 -
1:37:28
Kim Iversen
15 hours agoNOT GUILTY: The Uhuru Three Are Cleared Of Being Russian Agents in Landmark Free Speech Case
137K106 -
2:30:03
We Like Shooting
22 hours ago $2.74 earnedWe Like Shooting 577 (Gun Podcast)
55.6K1