homehome Home chatchat Notifications


Huge tornadoes discovered on the Sun

Solar tornadoes several times bigger than the Earth are generated in the solar atmosphere, researchers claim, after such a tornado was discovered using the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly telescope on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO) satellite. “This is perhaps the first time that such a huge solar tornado is filmed by an imager. Previously much […]

Mihai Andrei
March 29, 2012 @ 3:02 pm

share Share

Solar tornadoes several times bigger than the Earth are generated in the solar atmosphere, researchers claim, after such a tornado was discovered using the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly telescope on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO) satellite.

“This is perhaps the first time that such a huge solar tornado is filmed by an imager. Previously much smaller solar tornadoes were found my SOHO satellite. But they were not filmed,” says Dr. Xing Li, of Aberystwyth University.

The tornadoes were observed on 25 September 2011, and astrophysicists estimate they got as hot as 2.000.000 degrees, sucking the root of a dense structure called prominence and spiraling up in the air and traveling about 200 000 kilometres along helical paths for a period of at least three hours.

“This unique and spectacular tornado must play a role in triggering global solar storms.”, added Dr. Huw Morgan, co-discover of the solar tornado.

The extremely hot gases travel at speeds as high as 300,000 km per hour, while typically, tornadoes on Earth have 150 km per hour. The tornadoes occur at the roots of huge coronal mass ejections, and they can cause significant damage to our planet’s space environment, satellites, and even power grids.

share Share

Astronomers Found a Star That Exploded Twice Before Dying

A rare double explosion in space may rewrite supernova science.

Menstrual Cups Passed a Brutal Space Test. They Could Finally Fix a Major Problem for Many Astronauts

Reusable menstrual cups pass first test in space-like flight conditions.

A Rocket Carried Cannabis Seeds and 166 Human Remains into Space But Their Capsule Never Made It Back

The spacecraft crashed into the Pacific Ocean after a parachute failure, ending a bold experiment in space biology and memorial spaceflight.

An Asteroid Might Hit the Moon in 2032 and Turn It Into a Massive Fireworks Show from Earth

The next big space threat isn't to Earth. It's to the Moon.

This Colorful Galaxy Map Is So Detailed You Can See Stars Being Born

Astronomers unveil the most detailed portrait yet of a nearby spiral galaxy’s complex inner life

A NASA Spacecraft Just Spotted a Volcano on Mars Like We Have Never Seen Before

NASA's Mars Odyssey captures a surreal new image of Arsia Mons at sunrise

Astronomers Found a Volcano Hiding in Plain Sight on Mars

It's not active now, and it hasn't been active for some time, but it's a volcano.

The World’s Largest Camera Is About to Change Astronomy Forever

A new telescope camera promises a 10-year, 3.2-billion-pixel journey through the southern sky.

The Sun Will Annihilate Earth in 5 Billion Years But Life Could Move to Jupiter's Icy Moon Europa

When the Sun turns into a Red Giant, Europa could be life's final hope in the solar system.

A Massive Particle Blasted Through Earth and Scientists Think It Might Be The First Detection of Dark Matter

A deep-sea telescope may have just caught dark matter in action for the first time.