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3d ago

DKIST Captures Tiny Kelvin-Helmholtz Whirlpools on the Sun’s Surface

The images point to a small-scale process that can twist magnetic fields and may help explain coronal heating and how flares and CMEs gain energy.

The sun's visible surface, or photosphere, in an image taken by the Hawaii-based Inouye Solar Telescope, in this handout image released August 5, 2026. The image reveals deformed boundaries of magnetic elements and ultra-fine scale stripes, both associated with a phenomenon called Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. NSF/NSO/AURA/MPS/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.
Image
The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope is located in Maui.
The highest-resolution image of the Sun’s surface (photosphere) ever captured, taken at 416 nm by the Inouye Solar Telescope. It reveals deformed boundaries of magnetic elements and ultra-fine scale stripes, both associated with Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. Credit: NSF/NSO/AURA/MPS

Overview

  • An international team published in Nature on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026, the highest-resolution photospheric images yet from the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope that reveal dense fields of small vortex patterns identified as Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities.
  • The telescope’s 4-meter mirror and adaptive optics resolved features down to about 20 kilometers, with observed vortices ranging roughly 19 to 170 kilometers across along magnetic boundaries near a sunspot.
  • High-resolution magnetohydrodynamic simulations reproduced the same fringe-to-vortex behavior and spacing, giving the first direct observational confirmation that the patterns are KHI rather than image artifacts.
  • Researchers say the KHI whirlpools can twist and braid magnetic field lines, offering a plausible mechanism for moving and dissipating magnetic energy that may feed coronal heating and the buildup that triggers solar flares and coronal mass ejections.
  • Teams are now developing automated pattern-recognition to scan larger DKIST data sets and planning follow-up observations to measure how much energy KHIs transport upward and to improve space-weather forecasts that affect satellites, power grids and communications.