Paris: (Paris) European Solar Orbiter (Solar Orbiter) brings the secrets hidden inside the Sun (Sun) to scientists on Earth. Now a unique astronomical phenomenon has been seen in our solar system through this probe. A strange filament was observed before a massive explosion of plasma on the Sun, which looked very much like a ‘snake’. The European Space Agency said the ‘snake’ was actually a tube of cold atmospheric gases that was passing through the Sun’s magnetic field.
- The orbiter observed a unique astronomical phenomenon in the solar system
- A strange ‘snake-like’ filament was spotted on the Sun before a massive burst of plasma.
- There was a tube of cold atmospheric gases passing through the Sun’s magnetic field
The event was seen from space on September 5 while the Solar Orbiter was heading towards the Sun for a close flyby on October 12. This is the first time such a sight has been seen on the surface of the Sun. What makes the solar snake phenomenon even more interesting to astronomers is that it occurred before the Sun experienced a major explosion. It started from a solar active region that later exploded, spewing billions of tons of plasma into space.
A solar snake was indicative of a plasma explosion
Astronomers speculate that the solar snake phenomenon was an indication of a plasma explosion that was observed by a solar orbiter. A plasma is a state of matter in which a gas is so hot that its molecules begin to lose some of their outermost particles called electrons. The ejection of electrons creates an electrical charge that interacts with the Sun’s magnetic field. All the gases in the Sun’s atmosphere are plasma because the temperature here is over one million degrees Celsius.
The speed was 105,000 kmph
The European Space Agency’s orbiter was launched in February 2020 to observe the Sun from a distance of 42 million km. In a video released by ESA, the solar snake reaches from one corner to another in the blink of an eye. Meanwhile its speed was 105,000 km per hour. Despite this the gas took 3 hours to complete its journey. It looked like a snake from a distance due to the gases passing through the curved magnetic field.