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Back Doing the wave

Doing the wave

Date: 05 January 2003
Copyright: NASA

The MDI instrument on board the SOHO spacecraft shows that the apparent 'superrotation' of the supergranules is due to the vertical motion in the supergranular cells. As in a stadium, people do not move in the direction of the wave - just up and down. This artist's impression shows a band of supergranules rotating faster across the Sun's surface than other features, such as dark sunspots. This occurs everywhere on the Sun's surface, but is simplified to a narrow band here to highlight the phenomenon.
Last Update: 1 September 2019
21-Apr-2026 11:46 UT

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