Highest-Resolution Images of the Sun Reveal Previously Unseen Kelvin-Helmholtz Instabilities

Astronomers have captured the highest-resolution images of the sun's surface to date using the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope in Hawaii. These images reveal the first direct evidence of Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities on the sun's visible surface, a fluid phenomenon that creates swirling, ripple-like structures when layers of plasma move at different speeds. This discovery, published in Nature, is significant for understanding the underlying physical processes that drive solar eruptions and could improve computer models for forecasting space weather.