Holes in the Sun’s Magnetic Field

A Hole in the Sun (NASA, Hinode, 02/01/11)
Image by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center via Flickr

A Japanese satellite was able to capture images for two huge holes in the Sun’s outer atmosphere (solar corona).

Known as “coronal holes” these openings in the Sun’s magnetic field allow gas to escape into space through the star’s super-hot outer atmosphere where they become the Solar Wind. The solar wind could reach a speed of 250 miles/sec.

There was an older storm that happened in 1859, it was a result of a huge solar flare that created auroras that the whole world was able to see, it also disturbed telegraphs (the communication system at that time),  solar flares and coronal mass ejections have short dynamic effect on radio communication. Corona (sun’s atmosphere) is the white halo of hot gas around the sun you can only see during the solar eclipse otherwise it is invisible for the naked eye.

The discovery of the holes may help scientists  realize about the mystery of how can the corona be  millions of degrees hotter than its surface.

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