NASA’s SDO Captures Stunning 4K View of April 17 Solar Flare

  • Released Tuesday, April 26th, 2016
  • Updated Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023 at 1:48PM
  • ID: 12224

On April 17, 2016, an active region on the sun’s right side released a mid-level solar flare, captured here by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory. This solar flare caused moderate radio blackouts, according to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center. Scientists study active regions – which are areas of intense magnetism – to better understand why they sometimes erupt with such flares. This video was captured in several wavelengths of extreme ultraviolet light, a type of light that is typically invisible to our eyes, but is color-coded in SDO images for easy viewing.



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NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center


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