[동포투데이 철민 기자] The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently released a satellite image showing the ‘smiling face’ of the sun’s surface, which has been popular on US social networking services (SNS), US Business Insider.com reported on the 29th.
This photo was taken by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory research program to understand changes in solar radiation output. The picture released shows three black spots on the surface of the sun, resembling a pair of eyes and a smiling mouth.
The official NASA account @NASASun said, “Today NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured the sun’s ‘smile’. The area is to come,” it explained.
This area is said to appear as a dark spot in the observational picture because it is typically cooler and less dense than the surrounding area.
According to the American scientific journal Life Sciences, corona holes can form at any time, but they cannot be seen with the naked eye or with a home telescope, and can only be seen with ultraviolet and X rays.
The photo became the subject of discussion among Twitter users, such as comparing it to the ‘smiling sun’ of the children’s program ‘Teletubbies’ or to a Halloween pumpkin.
However, some argue that there may be some dangers behind this interesting astronomical phenomenon. Space Media, Spaceweather.com, explained that the corona void could be a sign that a geomagnetic storm could occur between October 29 and 30.
