The “blue moon” made news on Friday, but what about a blue sun? This eerie and gorgeous image of the sun was snapped on July 15 using the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager aboard NASA’s STEREO-A spacecraft, “which collects images in wavelengths of light that are invisible to the human eye.”
Why does it look blue? NASA explains:
This image shows the sun in wavelengths of 171 angstroms, which are typically colorized in blue. STEREO-A has been on the far side of the sun since March 24, where it had to operate in safe mode, collecting and saving data from its radio instrument. The first images in over three months were received from STEREO-A on July 11.
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Pretty enough to inspire a pop song or two, too.
Image credit: NASA/STEREO
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