On June 3, 2025, solar science reached a new milestone. The National Science Foundation’s Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope revealed something never seen before. It captured the sharpest image of the Sun’s surface ever taken. The image shows fine magnetic striations—tiny stripes—across the solar photosphere. Scientists call them “magnetic curtains.” These striations are narrow, about 20 kilometers wide. That’s roughly the size of Manhattan. But they span much larger regions of the Sun’s surface. These patterns are a breakthrough. They let scientists see solar magnetism in much greater detail. The discovery also proves the power of the Inouye Solar Telescope.
A telescope built for extreme detail
The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope sits on the island of Maui, Hawaii. It’s the world’s most powerful solar telescope. The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded and manages it through the National Solar Observatory (NSO). The telescope has a 4-meter (13.1-foot) primary mirror. That gives it unmatched resolving power. It can spot features on the Sun as small as 20 kilometers across. Until now, no telescope could see this fine a level of detail.
It uses adaptive optics. These are special systems that remove the blur caused by Earth’s atmosphere. The result? Crystal-clear views of the solar surface. Even the smallest magnetic features become visible. This new image comes from the telescope’s Visible Broadband Imager (VBI). The VBI takes rapid sequences of high-resolution photos. Scientists then combine these frames using advanced image processing. This process brings out fine structures like the newly discovered striations.
What the image shows
The new image focuses on the Sun’s photosphere. This is the visible surface layer of the Sun. The surface is covered in boiling cells called granules. Each granule is about the size of Texas and lasts for a few minutes. Hot plasma rises in the center and sinks at the edges. But in this image, something else is visible, something new.
On the walls of these granules, thin, dark, and bright stripes appear. These are the magnetic striations. Scientists describe them as “curtain-like” features. They ripple gently, just like curtains in a breeze. This motion isn’t caused by wind, of course. It’s the result of changing magnetic fields. These fields bend and twist in layers. They influence the way light travels through them. In some cases, the striations appear dark. That means the magnetic field in that area is weaker than the surrounding field. In other areas, the striations appear bright. That suggests stronger local magnetism.
These fine lines have never been seen before. The resolution needed was beyond the reach of previous instruments. Now, they provide clues about how magnetic energy behaves at the smallest scales.
What are magnetic striations?
The term “magnetic striations” refers to very thin structures aligned with magnetic fields. On the Sun, magnetic fields are everywhere. They shape how plasma flows. They create sunspots, flares, and eruptions. But most solar magnetic activity happens on small scales. That’s where the Inouye image shines. Striations mark regions of different magnetic strength. They result from magnetoconvection—how hot plasma moves in the presence of magnetic fields. Plasma flows up from deep inside the Sun. Magnetic fields channel and shape these flows.
In the newly released image, we see how the plasma walls of granules contain these ribbons. Some curve, some stretch, and some swirl. These patterns give scientists a look into the complex, fine-scale magnetic structures shaping the Sun’s surface.
How the image was taken
The image was taken using the Visible Broadband Imager (VBI), one of the Inouye Solar Telescope’s first-light instruments. It operates in different optical wavelengths. The released image was captured in the G-band wavelength at 430 nanometers.
The VBI takes high-speed image bursts. It captures tens of frames per second. These frames undergo “speckle reconstruction.” That means scientists correct the image for atmospheric turbulence and camera noise. Once processed, the result is incredibly sharp. Each pixel represents a small area, just 12.5 kilometers on the solar surface. That’s the highest resolution ever achieved for solar surface imaging. The scene captured is about 30,000 kilometers across. It shows granules, striations, and magnetic detail across a massive region. Yet each tiny element remains crystal clear.
The clearest image of the Sun’s surface has changed solar science. For the first time, we see the Sun’s magnetic threads in fine detail. The curtain-like striations offer both beauty and insight. They show us how much we’ve missed. They prove the Inouye Solar Telescope’s unmatched power. And they open the door to deeper knowledge of the star that gives us life. In the coming years, we’ll see even more. But this image will remain a landmark, a turning point in our quest to understand the Sun.
Clear skies!