Explanation: The Sun's
surface is not smooth. It has thousands of bumps called granules
and usually a few dark depressions called sunspots. Each of the
numerous granules is the size of an Earth
continent, but much shorter lived. A granule
can only be expected to last a few minutes before dissipating
and being replaced by a newly rising granule. In this way a granule
acts much like a rising bubble in boiling water.
The above black and white, visible-light picture
is quite unusual because the usual relative darkening visible
near the edges of the Solar disk
have been digitally removed. Visible near the center are two
large sunspots
while the computer enhancement brings out two bright plages
close to the right solar limb.
**Palette:** *nebula*
Original
