Latest Solar Dynamics Observatory Stories

  NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, has provided scientists new information about solar flares indicating an increase in strength and longevity that is more than previously thought. Solar flares are intense bursts of radiation from the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots. They are the solar system's largest explosive events and are seen as bright areas on the sun. Their energy can reach Earth's atmosphere and affect operations of Earth-orbiting communication...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, has provided scientists new information about solar flares indicating an increase in strength and longevity that is more than previously thought. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) Solar flares are intense bursts of radiation from the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots. They are the solar system's largest explosive events and are seen as bright areas...

NASA will host a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 7, to discuss new observations about solar flares that can impact communication and navigation systems. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, or SDO, is providing new data and images for scientists to better understand the sun's dynamic processes, which can affect Earth. The spacecraft launched in February 2010. Teleconference participants are: -- Madhulika Guhathakurta, SDO program scientist, NASA Headquarters...

  Imagine forecasting a hurricane in Miami weeks before the storm was even a swirl of clouds off the coast of Africa—or predicting a tornado in Kansas from the flutter of a butterfly's wing(1) in Texas. These are the kind of forecasts meteorologists can only dream about. Could the dream come true? A new study by Stanford researchers suggests that such forecasts may one day be possible—not on Earth, but on the sun. "We have learned to detect sunspots before they are visible to...

NASA has selected Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc. in Columbia, Md., to provide Ground Systems and Mission Operations support. The total maximum ordering value of the cost-plus-award fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite- quantity contract is $450 million. The effective ordering period is from Nov. 1 through Oct. 31, 2016. The work will be performed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Under this contract, Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc. will support a wide range...

GREENBELT, Md., Aug. 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA has selected Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc. in Columbia, Md., to provide Ground Systems and Mission Operations support. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) The total maximum ordering value of the cost-plus-award fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite- quantity contract is $450 million. The effective ordering period is from Nov. 1 through Oct. 31, 2016. The work will be performed at NASA's Goddard Space Flight...

A NASA space observatory witnessed an unusual solar flare on Tuesday that could cause interference to satellites, communications and power on Earth in the next few days, officials warn.Not since 2006 has an eruption of this magnitude been seen reports the National Weather Service.A statement by NASA's solar dynamics observatory says, "The sun unleashed an M-2 (medium-sized) solar flare with a substantial coronal mass ejection (CME) on June 7 that is visually spectacular.""The large cloud of...

So great is the wealth of data about the Sun now being sent back by space missions such as SOHO, STEREO and the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) that scientists back on Earth can struggle to keep pace. To combat this data overload, scientists from the Visual Computer Centre at Bradford University are developing advanced imaging tools to help scientists visualize what's happening at the Sun, make sense of the data and predict the extreme solar activities that could affect our life here on...

Researchers at the University of Central Lancashire have monitored the birth of a sunspot over a period of eight hours using observations from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Dr Stephane Regnier will present the results at the RAS National Astronomy Meeting in Llandudno on Monday 18th April.The emerging sunspot was first detectable at 17:00 UT on 30th May 2010 in SDO magnetograms, which map the magnetic intensity of the solar disc. The first signs were small patches of strong...

WASHINGTON, March 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA-sponsored research has resulted in the first computer model that explains the recent period of decreased solar activity during the sun's 11-year cycle. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) This recent solar minimum, a period characterized by a lower frequency of sunspots and solar storms, was the deepest observed in almost 100 years. The solar minimum has repercussions on the safety of space travel and the...