Sun, unlike earth, is not a hard mass of land and water. Instead, the sun is defined equal to an igneous orb containing typically elemental helium and hydrogen. The sun, which is the center of our solar system and the magnanimous object of our solar system, has some really astonishing facts that surround it. The outermost layer of the sun’s atmosphere is referred to as ‘Corona’. It is this dense layer which is visible during solar eclipse through the means of special-care instruments.
As the sun is the epitome of light and high temperatures, the gas that we talk about on the sun, is actually the fourth state of matter- the plasma. The sun’s plasma are highly charged and energetic particles, some of which are able to break free from the sun’s gravity and escape into space. These particles are then referred to as ‘solar winds’.
Findings from the Parker Probe
The Parker Solar Probe, is one of NASA‘s missions especially engineered to study sun’s behavior over time. It is a breakthrough technology that has the ability to withstand strong thermal temperatures and radiations. With the Parker Probe, scientists are able to study and unlock intriguing features about the sun’s corona and solar winds. The Parker Probe had for the first time perforated the corona layer in the year 2021.
Data revealed by the probe has very much to say. The solar wind protects earth and all other planets from the devastating effects of highly-charged particles from the coronal layer by a means of a magnetic barrier, known as the heliosphere. The probe also illustrated that the solar winds could reach up to the speeds of 1.6 million kilometers per hour. The findings revealed that these particles shoot out from the sun in a similar manner as water comes out when we turn on a shower. As the sun is an intense ball of high-energy plasma, this high energy creates holes from time to time which are the source of solar winds.
The scientists also said that these holes usually appear in the sun’s corona around poles during solar minimum. Solar minimum is the period in the sun’s cycle when it is generally calm when compared to active and stormy periods- solar maximum. The active period of the sun comes about every 11 years in which the magnetic field around the sun changes which ultimately switches the position of the poles. This switch in position results in an outburst of solar wind headed straight at earth.
The studies were published in the Nature journal. All of this surmount of information was possible due to the superior research made possible by Parker Probe. It is definite that what we see from earth is completely and absolutely different from what is observed flying close to the sun.
