Spectacular Images of the Sun from the Solar Dynamics Observatory

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) is a spacecraft launched by NASA in February 2010 to photograph and study solar activity and its effect on space weather, and how it influences the Earth.

The following pictures were taken by the SDO using various filters and wavelengths to study the different aspects of the sun.

Video of the SDO

"The SDO is designed to probe solar variability in a way that no other mission can match. High-speed cameras on SDO will take rapid-fire snapshots of solar flares and other magnetic activity.
This will have the same transformative effect on solar physics that the invention of high-speed photography had on many sciences in the 19th century."

"SDO doesn't stop at the stellar surface. A sensor on the observatory can actually look inside the Sun at the very source of solar activity—the solar dynamo itself. There SDO will find vital clues to the mystery of the solar cycle and help scientists predict the future of solar activity."

For more information, visit the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory website