The evolution of these magnetic fields causes violent eruptions and solar storms originating in the corona. The turbulent corona is threaded with magnetic fields generated beneath the visible solar surface. "This confirms that computer models can describe the physics of the solar corona," said Zoran Mikic of Science Applications International Corp, San Diego, Calif. Such predictions will help protect astronauts against radiation from flares and coronal mass ejections, in addition to mitigating disruptions on orbiting satellites and land-based communications and power systems. It's the same approach the National Weather Service uses to predict when the Earth's atmosphere will produce thunderstorms or hurricanes.
tif #3 | + More Prediction Information | + More Comparison/Observation Information)īy accurately simulating the behavior of the corona, scientists hope to eventually predict when it will produce flares and coronal mass ejections, huge clouds of hot plasma ejected from the sun. Credit #3: The Williams College Eclipse Expedition with support from NSF/NASA/National Geographic.
#Sun corona vector download
Click on images to download larger versions. The sun's surface and the solar plasma streaming out into space (both orange) come from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft. Images on the left and center show two representations from the model while the right image shows a composite of the eclipse using a photograph of the corona (gray) taken in Kastellorizo, Greece, by the Williams College Eclipse Expedition. Images 1-3 above: Researchers set out to predict the view of the solar atmosphere, or corona, which is most easily observed during an eclipse. Funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation, the computer model marks the beginning of a new era in space weather prediction. For the first time, researchers have developed a computer simulation that can accurately create a model of the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona.
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