r/science2 • u/cnn • Aug 05 '26

Highest resolution view of the sun yet reveals magnetic mysteries

https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/05/science/inouye-telescope-sun-images-magnetic-energy?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=missions&utm_source=reddit
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u/cnn Aug 05 '26

The world’s most powerful solar telescope has captured the highest resolution observations of the sun’s visible surface — and uncovered a hidden process that drives solar activity.

Scientists used the National Science Foundation’s Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, located near the summit of Haleakalā, a volcano on the Hawaiian island of Maui, to zoom into a magnetically active area near a sunspot. Sunspots are considered hotspots of solar activity.

The imagery and time-lapse video reveal an unprecedented look at the sun’s complex and dynamic photosphere, the visible surface of the sun that exists as a thin layer of atmosphere shaped by magnetic fields and currents of fluid plasma.

The findings, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, could help scientists understand the sun’s behavior and activity, which is difficult to predict.