Coronal Loops Arching From the Sun Visible in New Observatory Footage

Credit: Solar Dynamics Observatory, NASA

New imagery captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory reveals a close look at a coronal loop flowing above an active region of the Sun.

Active regions of the Sun are areas with particularly intense magnetic fields, and coronal loops are fluxes of charged particles that are often found emanating above them. This particular footage shows the loop’s movements over a 12 hour period from September 28 to 29.

A small image of the Earth has been superimposed in the middle of this footage in order to juxtapose the massive scale of the Sun and its loops.