News: Huge Solar Tsunami on the Sun

Sun Tsunami

From Space.COM:

Scientists Spot ‘Tsunami’ on the Sun

A major flare on the Sun earlier this week generated what scientists are calling a solar tsunami.

The tsunami-like shock wave, formally called a Moreton wave, rolled across the hot surface, destroying two visible filaments of cool gas on opposite sides of the visible face of the Sun.

Astronomers using a prototype of a new solar telescope in New Mexico recorded the action.

“These large scale ‘blast’ waves occur infrequently, however, are very powerful,” said K. S. Balasubramaniam of the National Solar Observatory (NSO) in Sunspot, NM, “They quickly propagate in a matter of minutes covering the whole Sun, sweeping away filamentary material.”

(more here)


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