The observations from the Solar Orbiter spacecraft show feathery, hair-like plasma structures, eruptions, and showers of cooler material on the sun's surface. This insight could help solve the mystery of why the sun's atmosphere is hotter than its surface.
Footage recorded by the Extreme-Ultraviolet Imager instrument highlights delicate coronal moss patterns and spires of gas called spicules reaching 6,000 miles, with cooler material falling back down.
Coronal rain, composed of high-density plasma clumps falling back towards the sun, is visible against the bright background of large coronal loops. Dr. David Long notes the beauty of these observations, suggesting they occur around solar flares.
The footage can contribute to understanding why the sun's outer atmosphere (corona) is hotter than its surface, with brightest regions reaching 1,000,000C and cooler material appearing darker at less than 10,000C.
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