Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy has once again delighted all fans of his work with another impressive work. This time he created a unique 375-megapixel portrait of the Sun.
Currently, the Sun has reached the peak of another cycle of its activity. The surface of the star is covered with a large number of spots, and it regularly produces powerful flares and plasma ejections. When these emissions reach our planet, they cause geomagnetic storms accompanied by auroras.
In his new work, Andrew McCarthy has endeavored to convey the full power of our luminary. The image was composed of photos totaling more than a terabyte of data. They were made with a telescope modified for observations in the H-alpha wavelength range. This made it possible to capture fine details of the sun’s surface and its corona, such as spots and prominences.
At the same time, the photographer emphasized that in such portraits it is important to understand what is real and what is an artistic element. For example, the photo of the corona is real, but it was taken on the day of a total solar eclipse, while the chromosphere was taken later. Coronal loops, meanwhile, have been digitally added – but their images are based on real data.
You can see the plasma guided back onto the solar chromosphere by the magnetic loops in this time-lapse. Wild!
— Andrew McCarthy (@AJamesMcCarthy) July 27, 2024
See the full photo of the sun featuring the solar corona on my website here. I also have limited edition prints available for a short time. https://t.co/jHkqjin72c pic.twitter.com/sBK0N8KFMV
In addition to the photos, McCarthy also posted a timelapse he made. It demonstrates how the ejected plasma is guided back into the solar chromosphere, moving like a highway along magnetic field lines.
Earlier we told you how Johannes Kepler’s writings would help astronomers solve the mystery of solar cycles.
