NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Provides X-Ray And Ultraviolet Images Of the Sun (PHOTOS)

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) has been providing some stunning images of the sun since early 2010, but recently it began releasing daily images of the sun that will blow your mind.

The $865 million project equipped the semi-autonomous SDO craft to orbit the sun for five years, sending back advanced data about the life-giving star. Among the data retrieved are these photos images, which picture the light thrown off by the star at wavelengths not typically visible to the human eye.

These x-ray and ultraviolet images give a unique perspective and help scientists understand the internal motion of the giant ball of burning gas.

NASA has begun releasing daily images of the sun, which you can check out in the slideshow below, or here on NASA's website.

In addition, the NASA site also has a number of 48-hour timelapse videos of the star, that you can check out for yourself.

Comments

[Vivi Pruitt]

03:25 PM on 10/05/2011

These are not just pretty pictures. They indicate that the sun as the nucleus in our solar system is going through the process of mitosis. Amazing discovery NASA.

[Wanjiru]

04:50 PM on 10/04/2011

This is one of those instances I will comment just to be "in" with you guys, because - truthfully - I don't see anything special here. What am I missing?.

[Kassandra]

10:06 AM on 10/04/2011

Instead of wasting all that money studying it, why don't we tap it? Solar is the cleanest, least intrusive energy we could possibly use.

[Eserve1]

03:38 AM on 10/04/2011

You can also check this stuff out on www.spaceweather.com

[roomwitamoose01]

05:52 PM on 10/03/2011

i wish my irises looked like that!

[Kassandra]

10:07 AM on 10/04/2011

Take enough PCP and they will.....;^)

[abuckley23]

05:43 PM on 10/03/2011

Look at all the pretty colors...

[quovadiszero]

04:02 PM on 10/03/2011

Burn baby burn

[Ayla87]

11:28 AM on 10/03/2011

Now this is what I want to see in HP tech section. Real science and technology news, not fluff pieces about gadgets and the companies that are only out to make money and nothing else. Thanks HP. For once I actually learned something while visiting your site.

[realityCheckInTheMail]

11:25 AM on 10/03/2011

On the one hand, we have the opinions of PhD gelogists. (Not just those who work for Exxon, but the MIT study panel, the Obama study panel, etc.).

On the other hand, we have "celebrity activists".

Fracking is "controversial" because celebrities are good at generating controversy.

Frarm run off damages far more groundwater wells than fracking, and draws down far more water in doing so. Perhaps we should have celebrities activate against farming.

[hotairlagoon]

03:52 PM on 10/03/2011

On the one hand, we have a story with some really cool images of the sun...on the other hand, we have a poster who will not get out of the political arena no matter the topic. Why are you going on about fracking?

[realityCheckInTheMail]

04:17 PM on 10/03/2011

my bad, new browser installed. apologies.

[Linda from Deerfield]

09:19 AM on 10/03/2011

My husband can't get enough of these NASA views of the sun. He put the latest time-lapse on his home page so that he sees what the sun is doing every day. I have to agree that it is beautiful.

http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/aiahmi/latest.php?t=aia_0171&r=512

[Tatters]

09:16 AM on 10/03/2011

Coo to know that all the atoms and molecules that we are and we sell all around us were once part of that! We are all star stuff. And just to think that our sun is relatively small and on my computer, the earth is smaller than my cursor placed over the image.

[twin stars]

08:57 AM on 10/03/2011

Encounter and engage the light that YOU are!

[martay46]

08:26 AM on 10/03/2011

Totally cool!

[walkingwolf]

08:06 AM on 10/03/2011

Dang !!!... thats purty !!!

[Kim M Jozwiak]

06:35 AM on 10/03/2011

They are the most excellent pictures I have seen of the sun so far. Nice job