By — Adithi Ramakrishnan, Associated Press Adithi Ramakrishnan, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/watch-scientists-release-most-detailed-sun-images-ever Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter WATCH: Scientists release most detailed sun images ever Science Aug 6, 2026 2:35 PM EDT NEW YORK (AP) — Scientists have captured images of the sun's surface in the finest detail yet, revealing a strange and dynamic facade. PBS News' Tim McPhillips takes a closer look in the video above. It's dangerous to look directly at the sun without proper eye protection. But researchers were able to peek at its scorching surface with the help of the National Science Foundation's Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, located on the island of Maui in Hawaii. READ MORE: Total solar eclipse will sweep over Spain, Iceland and Greenland in August Scientists originally took the images for a different reason: to fine-tune and test the limits of the telescope. But when they looked at the results, they realized they'd photographed the sun's bright outer shell at higher resolution than ever before. Grow your mind Subscribe to our Science Newsletter to explore the wide worlds of science, health and technology. Enter your email address Subscribe Form error message goes here. Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm. What's more, they saw strange feathery patterns rippling across the surface. "That reminds me of famous paintings, like the swirling skies in Van Gogh's Starry Night," said solar physicist Ruizhu Chen with Stanford University, who was not involved with the new research. Researchers saw ripples of instability on the sun's surface caused by bits of magnetized plasma moving past each other at different speeds — similar to waves that stir when a gust of wind blows over water. It's a well-known phenomenon that guides how fluids move. READ MORE: Rescue mission launches to save NASA telescope that's falling back to Earth thanks to solar storms This has been glimpsed on Earth and other planets like Jupiter and Saturn, but "it has not been observed ever at that level on the solar surface," according to study co-author Friedrich Wöger with the National Solar Observatory. The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Nature. Scientists are curious about the sun's inner workings to better track massive bursts of energy called coronal mass ejections that can hurl toward Earth. When they hit, they can trigger solar storms, potentially scrambling GPS communications and producing colorful auroras. A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Donate now By — Adithi Ramakrishnan, Associated Press Adithi Ramakrishnan, Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Scientists have captured images of the sun's surface in the finest detail yet, revealing a strange and dynamic facade. PBS News' Tim McPhillips takes a closer look in the video above. It's dangerous to look directly at the sun without proper eye protection. But researchers were able to peek at its scorching surface with the help of the National Science Foundation's Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, located on the island of Maui in Hawaii. READ MORE: Total solar eclipse will sweep over Spain, Iceland and Greenland in August Scientists originally took the images for a different reason: to fine-tune and test the limits of the telescope. But when they looked at the results, they realized they'd photographed the sun's bright outer shell at higher resolution than ever before. Grow your mind Subscribe to our Science Newsletter to explore the wide worlds of science, health and technology. Enter your email address Subscribe Form error message goes here. Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm. What's more, they saw strange feathery patterns rippling across the surface. "That reminds me of famous paintings, like the swirling skies in Van Gogh's Starry Night," said solar physicist Ruizhu Chen with Stanford University, who was not involved with the new research. Researchers saw ripples of instability on the sun's surface caused by bits of magnetized plasma moving past each other at different speeds — similar to waves that stir when a gust of wind blows over water. It's a well-known phenomenon that guides how fluids move. READ MORE: Rescue mission launches to save NASA telescope that's falling back to Earth thanks to solar storms This has been glimpsed on Earth and other planets like Jupiter and Saturn, but "it has not been observed ever at that level on the solar surface," according to study co-author Friedrich Wöger with the National Solar Observatory. The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Nature. Scientists are curious about the sun's inner workings to better track massive bursts of energy called coronal mass ejections that can hurl toward Earth. When they hit, they can trigger solar storms, potentially scrambling GPS communications and producing colorful auroras. A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Donate now