Never Seen the Sun Like This: Record-Breaking Images of a Sun Flare Captured by a Hawaiian Telescope

The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope in Hawaii has captured the sharpest images ever recorded of a class X1.3 solar flare . The observations revealed dark coronal rings averaging 48 km across, some as small as 21 km—the smallest ever observed. This represents a potential turning point in the study of the fundamental scale of coronal structures , which will improve flare modeling and the ability to predict solar and magnetic storms , phenomena capable of disrupting satellites, power grids, and ground-based communications.

Solar flares are sudden bursts of energy generated by the Sun's magnetic activity. Within minutes, they release enormous amounts of radiation and particles, often accompanied by coronal mass ejections that can have effects all the way to Earth, interfering with communications and technological systems.

Coronal loops , on the other hand, are structures of glowing plasma that follow the lines of the solar magnetic field, forming spectacular arcs in the corona . These arcs can precede and accompany flares , revealing how magnetic energy is accumulated and released.

The extremely high-resolution images, taken on August 8, 2024, of a flare, were obtained with the Visible Broadband Imager instrument, which can distinguish details up to 24 km in diameter , more than twice as precise as the best previous solar telescopes. Scientists believe these images could represent the basic structures of the corona, the building blocks of the Sun's magnetic architecture.

The result, the fruit of a collaboration between the National Solar Observatory (NSO) and US universities, has been called a "historic moment for solar astrophysics." According to lead author Cole Tamburri , "we can finally observe the Sun at the same scales as its magnetic processes."