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A new NASA-funded study has revealed the origins of spicules

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– lengthy jets of plasma on the sun’s surface.

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Scientists have been observing these long strands of solar material since the end of the 19th century,

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but their origins have been difficult to study because they’re highly dynamic and short-lived.

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There are roughly 10 million spicules on the surface at any given time.

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They can grow up to 6,000 miles long and jet off the sun at 60 miles per second.

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Each one appears and collapses over the course of 5 to 10 minutes.

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Until recently, what drives these jets has been a mystery.

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In a new study, a model more than 10 years in the making was able to simulate spicules for the first time.

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Scientists compared the model simulations with observations

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from NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, or IRIS,

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and the Swedish 1-meter Solar Telescope based in La Palma, Spain.

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And found they were closely matched.

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With an accurate model of spicules, scientists could explore their origins.

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The model reveals that a key component of spicule formation

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is the interaction between charged and neutral particles with the magnetic field.

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Scientists believe that this interaction drags tangled magnetic field lines up above the sun's surface

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allowing them to straighten and expel solar material at high speeds similar to a whiplash.

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The model also shows this whiplash process creating strong magnetic waves,

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which scientists think could participate in heating the sun’s atmosphere

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and propelling the constant outflow of solar material called solar wind.

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Understanding spicules helps us to understand one of the ways that energy moves throughout our entire solar system.

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