NASA Observatory Captures Fiery Solar Eruption

NASA Observatory Captures Fiery Solar Eruption

Things are heating up at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration where the agency has captured a fiery video of a solar eruption. Recorded by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) on June 18, the footage shows an eruption ‘escape’ from the sun and mushroom into a coronal mass ejection.

Getting hot and heavy in outer space

The phenomenon occurs when heat from the sun rockets its halo of solar material into outer space. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration the material is made up of magnetic and plasma matter. When giant bubbles of gas collide with these lines of matter the effect is mesmerising.

NASA gets social

The SDO has had its sights set on the sun since 2010, and this latest video is a major accomplishment for the team of NASA researchers. To announce the news NASA turned to Twitter, one of the world’s favourite social media sites. On its account named @NASASunEarth, the agency revealed that the SDO was around 93 million miles away from the sun at the time of recording. Despite the extreme distance, the SDO still managed to capture high quality images that offer us a rare glimpse at one of the most spectacular light shows in the galaxy.

“We caught an eruption that escaped the sun, growing into a giant cloud of solar material,” tweeted NASA.  

Lighting up outer space

The incredible video captures the solar flames in blazing ultraviolet light that illuminates material suspended in the Sun’s lower atmosphere. Sometimes, coronal mass ejections will react with elements in the Earth’s atmosphere to put on spectacular lights shows similar to Aurora Borealis. NASA has nicknamed the flare the ‘Spit of Satan,’ a moniker that the media has wholeheartedly embraced.

While the video has been sped up to offer viewers a bite sized snippet of the incident, NASA says that the actual eruption occurred over a period of four hours. In the scheme of things this was a relatively short flare, as some incidents can last for up to a week!

Want to watch all the action unfold? Check out the full video here: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GrnGi-q6iWc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Cameras can capture incredible footage these days, and not just in outer space. ‘Particle Analysis with a CCD Camera’ looks at how the Fritsch GmbH helps scientists determine the particle size of powders. For scientists this allows for greater particle characterisation, enhanced depth of focus and faster image acquisition speeds.  

Images sourced via Flickr Creative Commons. Credits: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center