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Solar Triumvirate

Feb. 9, 2016
The magnetic field lines of three active regions in close proximity to one another interacted with each other over two and a half days (Feb. 8-10, 2016). This image is from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.

The magnetic field lines of three active regions in close proximity to one another interacted with each other over two and a half days (Feb. 8-10, 2016). When viewed in a wavelength of extreme ultraviolet light, the magnetic field lines are made visible by particles spinning along them. This triumvirate (in Roman history, an association of three in office or authority) gives us a great demonstration of the dynamic interactions just above the Sun's surface. Note too the small eruption off the left edge of the Sun about half way through the clip.

Movie
PIA20474_Triumvirate171_sm.mp4
PIA20474_Triumvirate171_big.mp4

SDO is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Its Atmosphere Imaging Assembly was built by the Lockheed Martin Solar Astrophysics Laboratory (LMSAL), Palo Alto, California.

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