The solar corona is the outermost layer of the Sun’s atmosphere, extending millions of kilometers into space. During a total solar eclipse, the Moon completely blocks the Sun’s visible surface (the photosphere), allowing the much fainter corona to become visible and enabling astronomers to study its shape, structure, and dynamics.
The intricate loops and streamers of the corona’s hot ionized gas (plasma) provide unique insights into the Sun’s magnetic field. Analyzing the corona helps scientists predict space weather events, like solar flares and coronal mass ejections, that can significantly disrupt communications satellites and power grids on Earth. It also provides insights into the mechanisms powering the corona’s blistering hot temperature – over 1 million Kelvin, as compared with the photosphere below it, which is a relatively cool 5,000 Kelvin.
This image is a composite captured during a total solar eclipse on April 8th, 2024. To bring out details throughout the corona, it integrates exposures of different durations, from 1/5,000th of a second to one second.
