During its closest-ever pass, NASA's Parker Solar Probe used Wide-Field imagers to record massive magnetic 'tadpoles' — tens of thousands of kilometers across — reconnecting back to the Sun's surface, a phenomenon described in a new Astrophysical Journal Letters paper led by Angelos Vourlidas (Johns Hopkins APL).
Discovered |
Briefing
The observation captures reconnection structures tens of thousands of kilometres wide during Parker Solar Probe's deepest dives, adding direct imaging to the probe's recent mapping of the solar-wind source region (see the probe's latest mapping of where the solar wind originates: https://hype.aero/?story=bb2a3903-4998-4e6a-b72f-09e9fa250ee6).
These new imaging and in-situ data refine understanding of heliospheric transport and feed into space-weather models, complementing the probe's earlier detection of a solar-wind 'U-turn' that offers better space-weather forecasting (https://hype.aero/?story=a3b00aa9-ba0d-4d47-8cde-2e055bef5a30).
The result provides cross-mission context for coronal magnetic dynamics alongside ESA Solar Orbiter's close-up observations of the Sun's magnetic engine, improving validation of processes that drive eruptions affecting satellites and critical infrastructure (https://hype.aero/?story=849207f9-9f7d-4bcd-a18f-4ad4c82f1b9f).
Reported By
Hype groups these reports into one evolving story so you can compare coverage without losing the thread.
Universe Today
• Andy Tomaswick