#PPOD: Solar Cells ☀️

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope has captured the highest-resolution image of the Sun's surface ever recorded. The image, produced by the National Solar Observatory (NSO), reveals a turbulent, "boiling" pattern of gas covering our star. The "boiling" appearance consists of cell-like structures, each approximately the size of Texas, which are formed by convective currents that move heat from the Sun's interior to its surface. Hot plasma rises in the center of the cells and sinks in the dark lanes at the edges. Tiny, bright markers of magnetic fields are visible in the dark lanes. It is thought that these specks of light funnel energy into the corona, the Sun's outer atmosphere, which could explain its high temperature. This image was part of the Inouye Solar Telescope's first-light observations, and its high resolution allows for the viewing of features as small as 30 kilometers for the first time.

Credit: Inouye Solar Telescope, NatSolarObs AURADC NSF