NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Reveals Giant Plasma Flows on Sun

Astrophysicist Dr. David Hathaway of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., tells how he and his colleagues used data from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, confirm the existence of giant flows of gases and plasma moving heat from the sun's interior to its surface. The findings end 45 years of speculation about the "giant convection cells" and advance understanding of the formation of sunspot activity that causes space weather events, which can impact power grids and disrupt telecommunications infrastructure on Earth.