Understanding the Magnetic Sun

NASA GSFC solar scientist Holly Gilbert explains a computer model of the sun’s magnetic field.

Grasping what drives that magnetic system is crucial for understanding the nature of space throughout the solar system: The sun's invisible magnetic field is responsible for everything from the solar explosions that cause space weather on Earth – such as auroras – to the interplanetary magnetic field and radiation through which our spacecraft journeying around the solar system must travel.

We can observe the shape of the magnetic fields above the sun's surface because they guide the motion of that plasma – the loops and towers of material in the corona glow brightly in EUV images. Additionally, the footpoints on the sun’s surface, or photosphere, of these magnetic loops can be more precisely measured using an instrument called a magnetograph, which measures the strength and direction of magnetic fields.

Scientists also turn to models. They combine their observations – measurements of the magnetic field strength and direction on the solar surface – with an understanding of how solar material moves and magnetism to fill in the gaps. Simulations such as the Potential Field Source Surface, or PFSS, model – shown in the accompanying video – can help illustrate exactly how magnetic fields undulate around the sun. Models like PFSS can give us a good idea of what the solar magnetic field looks like in the sun’s corona and even on the sun’s far side.

Science Paper:
Photospheric and heliospheric magnetic fields by Carolus J. Schrijver and Marc L. De Rosa

Original Visualization:

[ballstreet]

The sun is so much better than Netflix

[TheMusketITuckedIt]

I knew most of this stuff already but seeing it in realtime really puts it into perspective.

[roidroid]

Yikes, video compression really hit this one hard

[PantherFox]

Thank you for making this. I've always wanted to see the magnetic fields of the sun

[ichbinein]

Great narration! More of that please :)

[fifaclips]

Awesome video loved the simple explanations, really clicked.
Thanks a bunch.

[ahmedshinwari]

Does anyone know what is the origin of sun's magnetic field? Any pointers would be appreciated.

[EgoIsFlawed]

almost looks like giant impacts of invisible matter jetting directly through the entire mass of the sun at random intervals, hundreds of giant blobs flying to the center like a piece of metal in an MRI in out in out then wham to the wall of magnet. crazy looking field movement.

[malignor]

The thought:
I'm an animal life form of unimaginable biochemical complexity
In this massive city which has complexity beyond what I can fit into my mind
Which is just a dot on this massive planet which has unbounded sophistication and countless sites of wonder or dread
Which is just a pebble compared to that vast roiling mass of cosmic plasma and energy, so far away that I can't even mentally grasp such a distance.

I love my ignorance, because it humbles me. The physical world alone is overwhelmingly beautiful, and vast, and intricate.
Thoughts like this make me want to help people, or hug my family.

[corkhead]

We actually don't have much snow in Alberta right now. It's been a warm winter.

[HaniYahya]

I wanna see the Earth's please! Thanks:)

[jaym]

Why does the sun's magnetic polarity switch every ~11 years?
Does it have anything to do with Jupiter? If so why?

[abd-tesp]

Question, what is the relationship between magnetic field and gravity? Please explain.

[BrentBarbata]

Rad video! How do you even begin to model field line intensities?

[SmirnoffNorth]

Everything under the Sun is in tune, but the Sun is eclipsed by the Moon

[Kadag]

interesting regularity to the shifts in the surface to surface field lines. Like one a second in this modeling.

[rajesh]

This is what we used to stare at sun, when a kid.

[Scrbyte]

but how does it look at 12 or 24 frames per day instead of 1 frame per day?

[PianoArrangements]

Why hasn't anyone used spherical magnetic confinement instead (to mimic a star's topology due to gravity)?

E.g. injecting plasma into a magnetically confined spherical space and letting out the fused energy once a critical stage has been reached?

In nuclear fusion, the goal is to create a high-temperature and high-pressure environment enough to output more energy than put in.

Tokamaks (donut shape) have been the topology of choice for many years. However, it is very difficult to keep the plasma confined within the walls because of its high surface area (especially in the inner rings).

[jababbaMob]

Out of curiosity, what program(s) are being used to calculate and visualize this information? Processing or Cinder for example?

Thank you