NASA Releases Three-D Sun Images

For the first time, NASA has released three-dimensional pictures of the Sun, which were taken by the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) satellites.

These images will help to increase scientists' knowledge of the physics of the Sun and make it easier for them to forecast space weather.

STEREO has enabled scientists to view coronal mass ejections in three-D.

The STEREO mission was launched in October 2006. It uses two observatories that trace the movement of matter and energy from the Sun to the Earth. One of the observatories orbits ahead of the Earth, and one orbits behind.

Before STEREO, scientists cold not tell what was happening in areas of the Sun that had rotated out of view. STEREO now provides them with a 360 degree view of the Sun.

Some of the three-D images are available at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/stereo/news/stereo3D_press.html . You can use cyan and red three-D glasses to view them.