For the first time, scientists have imaged the elusive south pole of the sun. The images captured by the Solar Orbiter spacecraft reveal a magnetic field that is “a powder keg ready to blow.” The European Space Agency (ESA) has released the historic images, which show a view of our star that no human or spacecraft has ever recorded before.
The solar south pole was visible only when the Solar Orbiter spacecraft tilted its orbit 17 degrees below the solar equator. This brought the sun’s enigmatic south pole into view for the first time ever. The new images capture the solar pole in a broad swath of visible and ultraviolet wavelengths, using three of Solar Orbiter’s 10 onboard instruments.
The data from these images will help improve our understanding of the solar wind, space weather, and the sun’s activity cycle. Specifically, the magnetic measurements taken with the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) instrument reveal a temporary phenomenon where both north and south polarity magnetic fields are present at the sun’s south pole.
This mess of magnetism is believed to be a sign that the sun’s magnetic field is about to flip, which occurs every 11 years. The ESA says that this phenomenon is a hint that the sun’s magnetic field is ready to switch directions. The next solar minimum, expected five to six years from now, should see only one type of magnetic polarity at each pole.
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft will have more opportunities to test these predictions in the coming years, with its orbit tilting further away from the equator. This will expose the solar poles in greater detail, improving our knowledge of the sun and its behavior.
“This is just the first step of Solar Orbiter’s ‘stairway to heaven’,” said Daniel Müller, ESA’s Solar Orbiter project scientist. The data from these images will “transform our understanding of the Sun’s magnetic field, the solar wind, and solar activity.”
Source: https://www.livescience.com/space/the-sun/behold-the-suns-south-pole-imaged-for-the-first-time-in-history