Early Thursday morning, the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA released the closest pictures of the sun ever taken, and the photos are sure to brighten up your day! The Solar Orbiter, an international collaboration mission, completed its first close pass of the sun this June. The orbiter carries six imaging instruments that each study a different aspect of the Sun.
“These amazing images will help scientists piece together the Sun’s atmospheric layers, which is important for understanding how it drives space weather near the Earth and throughout the solar system,” said Holly Gilbert, a NASA project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Click the links below to view the rest of the radiant photos!
ESA/NASA’s Solar Orbiter Returns First Data, Snaps Closest Pictures of the Sun
- Image Credits: Solar Orbiter/EUI Team (ESA & NASA); CSL, IAS, MPS, PMOD/WRC, ROB, UCL/MSSL
