The European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter has delivered humanity’s first video and images of the Sun’s south pole, offering scientists a groundbreaking look at one of the least understood regions of our star, reads an ESA statement.
This unprecedented view reveals a swirling, superheated atmosphere—glowing at temperatures of around one million degrees Celsius—with darker, cooler gas clouds still reaching 100,000 degrees. These visuals provide crucial data for understanding how the Sun’s magnetic fields drive its activity, including powerful solar storms that can damage satellites and power grids on Earth.
“Today we reveal humankind’s first-ever views of the Sun’s pole,” said ESA Director of Science Prof. Carole Mundell. “The Sun is both our life source and a potential disruptor of modern systems—understanding it is essential.”
From Earth, the Sun appears as a bright, featureless disk. But with specialized instruments, scientists see a dynamic sphere where magnetic fields twist, reconnect, and launch flares and charged particles into space. These magnetic behaviors follow an 11-year cycle in which the Sun’s magnetic poles flip, transitioning from quiet periods to violent solar outbursts.
Until now, researchers lacked direct observations of these polar regions, limiting the accuracy of solar models. That has changed.
Prof. Lucie Green of University College London explained, “We now have the missing piece of the puzzle. We can finally observe the flows that carry magnetic fields to the poles—key to understanding the Sun’s cycle.”
Solar Orbiter’s SPICE instrument also recorded light signatures from chemical elements like hydrogen, oxygen, and neon. This allowed scientists to track the speed and flow of solar material, helping them study how solar wind forms and escapes into space.
“Solar Orbiter is bringing us closer to the Holy Grail of solar physics—predicting space weather,” said Prof. Christopher Owen, who studies solar wind dynamics. “Accurate forecasts could protect satellites, power systems, and even help aurora watchers.”
While the Sun remains a complex and volatile force, the data gathered by Solar Orbiter marks a transformative moment. For the first time, scientists can observe the very processes that govern the Sun’s changing behavior—and begin to build models that forecast the celestial storms that can touch life on Earth.
Bd-pratidin English/ Jisan
