Coronal Loops in an Active Region of the Sun

An active region of the sun just rotating into the view of NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory gives a profile view of coronal loops over about a two-day period, from February 8-10, 2014. Coronal loops are found around sunspots and in active regions. These structures are associated with the closed magnetic field lines that connect magnetic regions on the solar surface. Many coronal loops last for days or weeks, but most change quite rapidly. This image was taken in extreme ultraviolet light.

Image Credit: NASA/Solar Dynamics Observatory
Explanation from: http://www.nasa.gov/content/coronal-loops-in-an-active-region-of-the-sun/

Aurora over Arjeplog

Arjeplog, Lapland, Sweden

Image Credit & Copyright: Maria Sundqvist

VST images the Lagoon Nebula

The VLT Survey Telescope (VST) at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile has captured this richly detailed new image of the Lagoon Nebula. This giant cloud of gas and dust is creating intensely bright young stars, and is home to young stellar clusters. This image is a tiny part of just one of eleven public surveys of the sky now in progress using ESO telescopes. Together these are providing a vast legacy of publicly available data for the global astronomical community.

Image Credit: ESO/VPHAS
Explanation from: http://www.eso.org/public/images/eso1403a/