Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Science

Laser-blasted plasma shows how instabilities could heat the sun's corona

From its visible surface, the sun radiates heat at a relatively cool temperature of 5,800 Kelvin. Yet within the thin outer layer of the sun's atmosphere known as the corona, electrons can reach temperatures of millions of degrees, for reasons astronomers have yet to fully explain.

Laser-blasted plasma shows how instabilities could heat the sun's corona
Image: Phys.org
From its visible surface, the sun radiates heat at a relatively cool temperature of 5,800 Kelvin. Yet within the thin outer layer of the sun's atmosphere known as the corona, electrons can reach temperatures of millions of degrees, for reasons astronomers have yet to fully explain.

Originally published at Phys.org

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