From the Sun to the Earth: CME Enhancement
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- Visualizations by:
- Tom Bridgman
- View full credits
This visualization shows the dataset from STEREO-A processed to enhance the visibility of the coronal mass ejection (CME) in entry #3846. The data are combined from the SECCHI instrument, which includes an ultraviolet image of the Sun (EUVI), two coronographs (COR-1 & COR-2), and the wide-angle Heliospheric Imagers (HI-1 & HI-2).
Because the enhancement process for the CME involves computing differences from a number of sequential HI-1 and HI-2 images, the Earth (left side) and Venus (middle) are masked and oversized icons are installed to mark their position. The dark shape on the left of the field of view is created by an occulting tab that was installed to (occasionally) hide the bright Earth in the view.
The little cross markers label three other planets in the view of STEREO. Uranus is almost invisible in the scale of this imagery, but is visible in full-resolution datasets.
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio
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Animator
- Tom Bridgman (Global Science and Technology, Inc.) [Lead]
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Scientist
- Craig DeForest (SwRI)
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Producer
- Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Missions
This visualization is related to the following missions:Series
This visualization can be found in the following series:Datasets used in this visualization
STEREO-A (Collected with the Heliospheric Imager 2 (HI-2) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setSTEREO-A (Collected with the Heliospheric Imager 1 (HI-1) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setSTEREO-A (Collected with the Coronograph 2 (COR2) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setSTEREO-A (Collected with the Coronograph 1 (COR1) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setSTEREO-A (Collected with the Extreme UltraViolet Imager (EUVI) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setSTEREO 171 Angstroms (Collected with the Extreme UltraViolet Imager (EUVI) sensor)
Dataset can be found at: https://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov
See more visualizations using this data setNote: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details, nor the data sets themselves on our site.
Related pages
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ID: 5136 Visualization
STEREO-A Returns by Earth
Read moreThe Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) mission was launched on October 25, 2006, with the purpose of tracing the flow of energy and matter from the Sun to Earth. The STEREO mission began with two spacecraft: STEREO-A and STEREO-B. Each was launched into Sun-orbiting trajectories - STEREO-A moving ahead of Earth, and STEREO-B moving behind Earth (STEREO's Routes to Solar Orbits). In mid-August 2023, the still-operational STEREO-A (STEREO-B went offline in October 2014) will pass Earth for the first time since its launch 17 years ago. Like race cars driving different speeds around a circular track, STEREO-A is traveling slightly faster than Earth around the Sun. After launch, STEREO-A pulled ahead of Earth and extended its lead a little bit more with each orbit. Now, STEREO-A’s lead is so great that it is catching up to Earth from behind and is about to “lap” Earth, having completed 18 circuits around the Sun while Earth completed just 17. ||
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ID: 3846 Visualization
From the Sun to the Earth: The View from STEREO-A with no CME Enhancement
Read moreThis visualization shows the original dataset from STEREO-A used to extract the motion of the coronal mass ejection (CME) in ID 3890. The data are combined from the SECCHI instrument, which includes an ultraviolet image of the Sun (EUVI), two coronographs (COR-1 & COR-2), and the wide-angle Heliospheric Imagers (HI-1 & HI-2).On this scale, the CME is so faint as to be invisible. However, the Heliospheric Imagers support such a broad range of image intensity that it is possible to observe the CME propagating through the field of view by computing differences of images with the preceeding image. This process is shown in animation #3890.The Earth (left side) and Venus (middle) are so bright as to 'bloom' along the readout line of the CCD (Charge-coupled device) pixels, which creates the bright vertical lines that move slightly with time. The dark shape on the left of the field of view is created by an occulting tab that was installed to (occasionally) hide the bright Earth in the view.The little cross markers label three other planets in the view of STEREO. Uranus is almost invisible in the scale of this imagery, but is visible in full-resolution datasets. ||
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