CDS can produce images of the Sun at many wavelengths. In addition to hydrogen, the Sun's atmosphere contains atoms of common elements like helium, oxygen and magnesium. In the high temperature conditions of the Sun's atmosphere, these atoms emit light at different wavelengths depending on the temperature of the gas containing them. Therefore by tuning into different wavelngths we can make images of material which is at different temperatures. This capability is illustrated in the picture above, where CDS has taken images of magnetic loops of material which exetend high into the Sun's atmosphere. These loops have been rendered more easily visible by observing them when they occur near the limb of the Sun, and hence they are highlited against the dark background of space. The elements and their characteristic temperatures are indicated on the individual images. One of the surprises that the new SOHO/CDS data have produced is to show that loops at different temperatures can co-exist in the same regions of the Sun's atmosphere. The white disk plotted on the oxygen image shows the Earth to the same scale.

Downloads

• Full-size image [JPG, 206K]
• Medium-size image [JPG, 33K]
• Hi-resolution size image [TIF, 476K]