Solar Magnetic Bananas

Is that our Sun ? The unusual banana -shaped loops shown above are actually part of a computer-generated snap-shot of our Sun's magnetic field . This animated frame was constructed using data from the ground-based U.S. Solar Vector Magnetograph and the space-based Japanese X-Ray Telescope Yohkoh . Surfaces of constant magnetic field strength loop through the Sun's corona , break through the Sun's surface, and connect regions of magnetic activity such as sunspots . Recently, contact has been interrupted with the Sun-watching SOHO satellite. Although SOHO had completed its two year mission, attempts are still being made to re-establish communication.