Inouye Solar Telescope Detects Kelvin‑Helmholtz Instability on Sun’s Surface

Astronomers using the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope on Haleakalā, Maui, captured the highest‑resolution images ever of the Sun’s photosphere. The observations revealed swirling, vortex‑like patterns that confirm the presence of the Kelvin‑Helmholtz instability on the solar surface. An international team—including scientists from the U.S. National Solar Observatory, the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s High Altitude Observatory, and Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research—published the findings in *Nature*.

The discovery provides a new window onto the fundamental physics that heats the Sun’s outer atmosphere and drives magnetic energy accumulation, which fuels solar flares and eruptions. These solar events can affect satellites, GPS navigation, power grids and global communications. The Inouye telescope, the world’s most powerful solar instrument, continues to enable detailed studies of the solar corona and coronal‑mass ejections, further improving our ability to anticipate space‑weather impacts on Earth.