The sunspot image is so large that the entire planet Earth can fit inside it.
Astronomers from the world’s largest solar observatory, National Science Foundation in Hawaii have released the most detailed image of the sun’s spot.
The image is unprecedentedly detailed. It was captured on January 28, 2020, but it was published now.
“The sunspot image achieves a spatial resolution about 2.5 times higher than ever previously achieved, showing magnetic structures as small as 20 kilometers on the surface of the sun”
said Thomas R. Rimmele.
According to scientists, the resolution of the new photo is 2.5 times higher than any other image. On it, you can see magnetic structures up to 20 km in size and stripes of gases emerging from the center of the spot. The darker part of the sunspot is colder than the Sun’s surface, while its temperature is above 4200 degrees Celsius.
The slick diameter is more than 16 thousand kilometers.
“It’s just a tiny part of the sun,” the researchers note.
“This image represents an early preview of the unprecedented capabilities that the facility will bring to bear on our understanding of the Sun.”
says NSF Program Director for the Inouye Solar Telescope, Dr. David Boboltz.