Science
Related: About this forumSuper hi-res sunspot
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/08/04/super-hi-res-sunspot/
NutmegYankee
(16,199 posts)NRaleighLiberal
(60,015 posts)actually, I am astronomy buff - great picture, I can only imagine the various chemical and other processes going on in that spot!
Stargazer09
(2,132 posts)Has many of the warning signs for skin cancer.
I agree that it's a great picture. Makes me wish I could afford a nice telescope of my own. I love looking at the sun!
alfredo
(60,074 posts)Here's one just like mine, though mine was a 10.1" telescope and opposed to the 13.1" displayed. He has a camera attached. An 8" reflector will cost under $400.
I had to give up mine after my injury.
geckosfeet
(9,644 posts)The scale of all this is hard to grasp. A quick measurement on the image indicates that the spot is about 20,000 kilometers (12,000 miles) across in other words, just the spots umbra (the dark area) alone is roughly the same size as the Earth!
Its easy to forget just how mighty the Sun is, but pictures like this really slam it home. The Sun is a star, 1.4 million kilometers across, 330,000 times as massive as the Earth, and a complex, amazing, and wondrous place.
The granules are continent sized points of convection on the surface..
Stargazer09
(2,132 posts)Our sun is a fascinating place.
longship
(40,416 posts)He has been posting many incredible Astro Eye Candy in his Blog, which is a daily must see for me.
BTW, his book, Death From the Skies is really, REALLY a fun and very informative read. ( if you know about Phil, you'll get the joke.)
On the Road
(20,783 posts)but that hole looks like Australia.
Curmudgeoness
(18,219 posts)causing all the waves around that spot???? Incredible picture.