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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

The Changing Face of the Sun Over One Solar Cycle


This image shows a sequence of snapshots of the Sun, taken each year over almost an entire, 11-year long solar cycle. The activity clearly peaks around the year 2001.

The images have been taken by SOHO's Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) at a wavelength of 284 Å, corresponding to the emission line of fourteen-times ionized iron atoms (Fe XV) and showing material at temperatures of about 2 million Kelvin.

Photo credit: ESA/NASA - SOHO/EIT

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