Solar coronal loops. Coloured ultraviolet TRACE image of coronal loops on the Sun following a solar flare event observed in November 2000. The bases of the loops are the hottest areas (white). These areas raise the temperature of the solar corona (atmosphere) thousands of times above that of the Sun's surface (dark, lower frame). The loops comprise electrically charged gases (plasma) at millions of degrees Celsius. Gas is heated as it is ejected from the surface, and follows the path of magnetic field lines before crashing back down on the Sun's surface at over 100 kilometres per second. TRACE (Transition Region and Coronal Explorer) is a space observatory launched in 1998 to study the Sun at ultraviolet wavelengths.. Stunning Photo Gifts From Science Photo Library
