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Like a pot of boiling water. NASA has created a simulation of the Sun's behavior: the footage is simply fascinating

Inna VasilyukNews
This simulation was run on the Pleaides supercomputer at NASA's Advanced Supercomputing Center. Source: Screenshot

NASA supercomputers are revealing the causes of some of the most complex events on the Sun. The agency has created a simulation of the behavior of a hot star that resembles a pot of boiling water.

The footage from the new study is simply mesmerizing. Using data from a set of active spacecraft observing a hot star in the center of our solar system, scientists can study solar dynamics like never before, NASA says.

According to the scientists, the animation shows the power of turbulent movements of the Sun's inner layers as substances swirl into its atmosphere, resembling a pot of boiling water or a school of fish flying to the surface and diving further.

"Our modeling uses what we call a realistic approach. This means that we incorporate everything we know today about the solar plasma to reproduce various phenomena observed during NASA space missions," said Irina Kitiashvili, a scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in California.

Using modern computing capabilities, the team of specialists was able to reproduce for the first time the fine structures of the subsurface layer observed by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.

"Right now, we don't have the computing power to create realistic global models of the entire Sun because of the complexity. So we create models of smaller regions or layers that can show us the structures of the solar surface and atmosphere. For example, shock waves or tornado-like elements that are only a few kilometers in size," Kitiashvili added.

Scientists are striving to better understand the Sun and what phenomena determine the patterns of its activity. After all, the connection and interaction between the Sun and the Earth determine the seasons, ocean currents, weather, climate, radiation belts, auroras, and many other phenomena, experts say.

Space weather forecasts are crucial for space exploration, supporting spacecraft and astronauts, scientists emphasize.

According to the scientists, 2024 was a big year for our special star, dotted with events such as an annular eclipse, a total eclipse, and the Sun reaching its maximum solar period.

In December 2024, NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission, which helps researchers understand space weather right at the source, will get as close as possible to the Sun and break its own record by becoming the closest human-made object to reach the Sun, according to agency researchers.

"The Sun continues to amaze us. We are looking forward to seeing what other exciting events it will organize," summarized Irina Kitiashvili.

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