The DKIST Telescope on Top of An Extinct Volcano Has Taken the Most Detailed Pictures of The Sun

If a picture is worth a thousand words, the images and data produced by Inouye Solar Telescope will write the next chapters of solar physics research, including two new images released in celebration of this week’s events.

Over 25 years ago, the NSF invested in creating a world-leading, ground-based solar observatory to confront the most pressing questions in solar physics and space weather events that impact Earth. This vision, executed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) through the NSF’s National Solar Observatory (NSO), was realized during the formal inauguration of the Inouye Solar Telescope.

“NSF’s Inouye Solar Telescope is the world’s most powerful solar telescope that will forever change the way we explore and understand our sun,” said NSF Director, Sethuraman Panchanathan. “Its insights will transform how our nation, and the planet, predict and prepare for events like solar storms.”

More: The National Solar Observatory

The first images of the chromosphere – the area of the Sun’s atmosphere above the surface – taken with the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope on June 3rd, 2022. The image shows a region 82,500 kilometers across at a resolution of 18 km. This image is taken at 486.13 nanometers using the hydrogen-beta line from the Balmer series.

NSO/AURA/NSF

The first images of the chromosphere – the area of the Sun’s atmosphere above the surface – taken with the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope on June 3rd, 2022. The image shows a region 82,500 kilometers across at a resolution of 18 km with the Earth overlaid for scale. This image is taken at 486.13 nanometers using the hydrogen-beta line from the Balmer series.

NSO/AURA/NSF

Compared to Planet Earth:

NSO/AURA/NSF

NSO/AURA/NSF