Unveiling the Sun's Explosive Corona in Unprecedented Space Photo

The European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter spacecraft, in collaboration with NASA, has captured images of the sun's corona, its hotter outer atmosphere, which was previously impossible to image. The corona is a million times fainter than the sun's bright surface, but its temperature is 150 times hotter. Understanding the corona is crucial as it produces the solar wind, which can damage satellites and power grids. The images were obtained by modifying the Solar Orbiter's camera shutter, allowing for a deeper exploration of the corona. Solar Orbiter has six ultraviolet telescopes and is now taking close observations of the sun.