You're watching whirlpools on a star.

The Inouye Solar Telescope revealed tiny swirls along magnetic regions on the Sun's surface. Neighbouring flows moving at different speeds can roll into vortices.

Familiar fluid physics, on a stellar scale.

Whirlpools swirl across the surface of a star

Time-lapse telescope observations of swirling plasma on the solar surface

Time-lapse telescope observations of swirling plasma on the solar surface — NSF / NSO / AURA / MPS

Telescope image of the Sun's surface with fine swirling boundaries around magnetic regions

Telescope image of the Sun’s surface with fine swirling boundaries around magnetic regions — NSF / NSO / AURA / MPS

The Hawaiian Islands overlaid to scale on a telescope image of the solar surface

Whirlpools swirl across the surface of a star

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