Why Is the Sun's Corona So Hot?

The Sun's corona is hotter than its surface, but where do scientists think such immense heat comes from?

Thumbnail Credit: USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab

Hosted by: Reid Reimers

----------
----------
Dooblydoo thanks go to the following Patreon supporters:
Kevin Bealer, Mark Terrio-Cameron, KatieMarie Magnone, Patrick Merrithew, D.A. Noe, Charles Southerland, Fatima Iqbal, Sultan Alkhulaifi, Nicholas Smith, Tim Curwick, Alexander Wadsworth, Scott Satovsky Jr, Philippe von Bergen, Bella Nash, Chris Peters, Patrick D. Ashmore, Piya Shedden, Charles George
----------
----------
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?
----------
Sources:

Images:

[matthewcurmi]

Ah...back to the good old days when Corona didn't mean deadly virus.

[vipermagi]

I know I've said it before, but with my hearing difficulties, Reid Reimers is extremely easy to understand. I love the episodes with him hosting.

[SupLuiKir]

Now that the eclipse has passed it's safe to stare at the sun again.

[hadoukenjukin]

The first Youtube video in a while that says "SO HOT" and not be clickbait.

[bandgeek]

How could they not name this probe Icarus?

[hugoiwata]

To name a probe Parker Solar Probe is ask for an *almost right* mission...

[Master_Therion]

I can sympathize with the Sun. I used to drive a Toyota Corona, and it would overheat too. :(

[francoislacombe]

Plasma is not charged, it's as electrically neutral as the ordinary everyday stuff all around us, but its positive and negative particles move independently instead of being bound together in atoms and molecules.

[Viatoreptil]

So how are temperature readings of the sun's surface acquired if it's "beneath" or wrapped around the corona? How is an accurate reading of the surface temperature acquired without the interference of the hotter corona in the way?

[kairos-]

Why's the corona so hot? IDK, I think she got it from her mom's side of the family.

[orangeflamesushi]

Damn, I didn't know the Sun got corona. R.I.P

[IIIIIawesIIIII]

The voice of this guy is so intimidating :0
I can hardly focus on the topic, his voice just triggers my "fight or flight" reflexes xD

[UpcycleElectronics]

I imagine those are some interesting electronics on Parker. Soldered PCB's are probably a no go.

[GornubiusFlux]

If it's corona is hot then it should stick the beer in the freezer for 10 minutes so it's nice and cool.

[boulderingguy]

Who’s watching during 2020 coronavirus

[MrBones]

tl;dr
"We don't know for sure, but we're gonna find out."

[TheRogueWolf]

It's good that we're sending a probe to sweep the Sun. It's probably REALLY dusty by now.

[FewVidsJustComments]

Anyone else watching in 2020 get this in their YouTube recommendations?

[githon]

I have a few questions for SciShow Space that have to do with one topic. "What is a Gravity Well and how does it work?", "How do gravity wells form?", "Have there been any Gravity Wells discovered close to the Earth?" and lastly, "How would you go about observing a Gravity Well?"

[chalkchalkson]

"Plasma [...] a charged gas that forms when electron break away from their orbits" could be confusing to use the orbit analogy here, since we are talking about space