NASA/Solar Dynamics Observatory Magnetic connections Because of the way these sunspots affect pressure on the star (their increased magnetic pressure decreases the atmospheric pressure of the corona) they are incredibly volatile and often create dramatic solar flares. Sunspots, like the ones shown in this image, are areas where the magnetic field is significantly higher than anywhere else on the sun. These prominences take a day to form, and can last for several months, but eventually burst-like the one pictured above-when they become unstable, causing a solar flare. Occasionally, the sun will form solar prominences or looped rings of plasma (hot gas) that extend from the star's surface into its corona.
These CMEs, which are most easily understood as bubbles of electrified gas, cause the auroras that we see at the north and south poles When solar material enters the sun's atmosphere or the corona, it is often expelled out in what is called a coronal mass ejection (or CME). The next Venus transit will happen in 2117, which means no one currently alive is likely to see it ever again. This photo captures the transit of Venus-or the moment in which the planet passes in front of our sun-an event that happens only four times every 243 years. These images are a much clearer and safer way of getting a good look at the glowing ball of gas at the centre of our solar system. In the following slides, Stacker has rounded up 10 incredible photos of the sun from space taken by the agency. Over the last 100 years alone, the agency has taken thousands of photographs of the star. We can, for example, peruse NASA's online gallery of sun photos. After that, our natural defences take over and our sensitive eyes begin to water and burn, which typically causes us to blink and look away before long-term harm can be done.įortunately, there are better and easier ways to get a good look at the sun. And at the brightest point of the day, when sun-induced eye damage is most likely, the average person can only look at the sun long enough to experience a 39-degree Fahrenheit increase in corneal temperature. In order to cause permanent injury to the eye, the retina would need to heat up by 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The retina most certainly can be damaged by staring straight at the sun, but it would take several minutes of uninterrupted focus for that to happen. But does looking at the sun really cause blindness, or is that just an old wives' tale? Turns out, it's a bit of both. By the end of the month, you'll find the pair of planets rising even earlier, appearing in the east soon after it gets dark, with bright Jupiter hanging low in the sky.Every child, at least once in their life, has been admonished to not stare at the sun for so long lest they go blind. You'll find the trio rising in the southeast in the first couple of hours after dark, and gliding westward together over the course of the night. On the night of the 9th, Jupiter and Saturn escort the Moon across the sky. Turning to the evening sky, you'll have Saturn together with Jupiter as your planetary companions all month long. The spacecraft is planned to pass a little over 200 miles above the moon's surface, returning images and science data.Īlso, NASA is currently preparing its Europa Clipper spacecraft for launch in 2024. It's planned to make dozens of close flybys of Europa to investigate whether the moon could have conditions suitable for life.
But a pair of binoculars is enough to reveal the giant planet's four large moons as little starlike points of light next to Jupiter.Īnd this month, NASA's Jupiter-orbiting Juno spacecraft is slated to make a special, fast flyby of one of those icy moons, Europa, on the 29th. And it's around this time when the planet's at its biggest and brightest for telescope viewing. Jupiter's at opposition this month, making it visible all night under clear skies. On the morning of the 11th, before sunrise, you'll find the Moon just a couple of finger-widths from Jupiter in the sky, making for a great viewing opportunity to observe them together through binoculars. Mars forms a triangle of reddish objects in September, and into October, as it hangs near bright red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse in the morning sky.
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