The Hawaii Solar Telescope releases an image of a 10,000 mile wide sunspot

The largest solar telescope in the world captured its first image of a sunspot and shared it with the world.

The US National Science Foundation’s Daniel K. Inouye solar telescope, located in Hawaii, has achieved a spatial resolution about 2.5 times higher than in the past and the telescope is still in its final stages of completion.

The image shows the dark center of the sunspot, which is 7,500 degrees Fahrenheit despite being colder than the surrounding area.

The entire sunspot measures approximately 10,000 miles in diameter, large enough for the entire Earth to fit comfortably within it.

Scroll down for the video

The largest solar telescope in the world captured its first image of a sunspot and shared it with the world. The entire sunspot measures approximately 10,000 miles in diameter, large enough for the entire Earth to fit comfortably within it

The Inouye Solar Telescope is located in Maui and was built specifically to discover the explosive behavior of the Sun.

And while it’s not fully built yet, it’s still powerful enough to capture close-up images of the blazing star.

Dr Thomas Rimmele, associate director of the National Solar Observatory (NSO) of the NSF, said: “ The sunspot image achieves a spatial resolution about 2.5 times higher than ever before, showing small magnetic structures. like 20 kilometers on the surface of the sun. “

The image highlights the streaked appearance of hot and cold gas extending from the darker center.

The US National Science Foundation’s Daniel K. Inouye solar telescope, located in Hawaii, has achieved spatial resolution approximately 2.5 times higher than in the past and the telescope is still in its final stages of completion.

The point in the center is the result of the sculpture from a convergence of intense magnetic fields and hot gases bubbling from below.

The concentration of magnetic fields in this dark region prevents the heat inside the Sun from reaching the surface.

Sunspots are a visual of the Sun’s activity, and the more there are on the surface, the more active the massive star.

The Sun reached its solar minimum, the period with the lowest number of sunspots during its 11-year solar cycle, in December 2019 and the image taken by Inoyue is one of the first sunspots of the new solar cycle, which is expected to reach solar maximum in mid-2025.

The Sun reached its solar minimum, the period with the lowest number of sunspots during its 11-year solar cycle, in December 2019 and the image taken by Inoyue is one of the first sunspots of the new solar cycle, which is expected to reach solar maximum in mid-2025. Pictured is an image of the sun’s surface taken by Inouye in January

Dr Matt Mountain, president of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), the organization that operates NSO and the Inouye Solar Telescope, said: “With this solar cycle just starting, we are also entering the age of the telescope. solar Inouye. ”

“We can now point the world’s most advanced solar telescope towards the Sun to capture and share incredibly detailed images and add to our scientific insights into the Sun’s activity.”

Sunspots are associated with solar flares and coronal mass ejections, which are the key targets of astronomers due to the idea that they cause space weather events that impact Earth.

These events affect the technological life on our planet such as power grids, communications, GPS navigation, air travel, satellites and humans living in space.

The Inouye solar telescope is ready to add important features to the complement of instruments optimized for studying solar activity, in particular magnetic fields.

NSF’s Inouye Solar Telescope is located on the island of Maui in Hawaii. Construction began in 2013 and is expected to be completed in 2021.

Dr. David Boboltz, NSF Program Director for Inouye Solar Telescope ‘While the telescope’s start of operations has been slightly delayed due to the impacts of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

“This image represents a preview of the unprecedented capabilities the facility will bring to our understanding of the sun.”

WHY LESS SUN SPOTS CAUSE MORE PROBLEMS ON EARTH?

The lack of sunspot activity in the sun is due to a continuous period of inactivity in the star’s magnetic field.

As the sun moves through its 11-year cycle, it experiences active, quiet periods known as the solar maximum and solar minimum.

As the solar minimum approaches, some types of activity, such as sunspots and solar flares, will decrease, but long-lasting phenomena are also expected to increase.

This includes coronal holes, where fast-moving solar winds are created as the star’s magnetic field opens into space. This happens more regularly when the sun’s magnetic field becomes less active.

Strong solar winds emanating from three huge “holes” on the surface of the sun have started bombarding the Earth, scientists say. Fast-moving solar winds are created where the star’s magnetic field opens into space, represented here as vast black regions

The charged particles make their way into the solar system through these empty spaces and hit the atmosphere of our planet.

This can lead to a number of complications, including magnetic storms that can cause fluctuations in the power grid, impact on satellite operations, and can affect migratory animals.

An increase in solar winds can also alter the chemistry of the Earth’s upper atmosphere, which can trigger more lightning and aid in cloud formation.

It can also affect air travel, as more radiation is able to penetrate aircraft. This means that passengers on long-haul flights can receive radiation doses similar to dental X-rays during a single journey and puts flight crews in further danger.

The effects of the solar minimum may also include cooling and shrinking of the Earth’s upper atmosphere, due to the lesser amount of heat reaching the planet. This can allow space junk to accumulate in low Earth orbit.