National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Marshall Space Flight Center

Hinode (Solar-B)

Hinode (Solar-B)

EIS Gallery

EIS Tri-color

Hinode's Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) captured this mosaic set of images during the miminum and maximum phases of the solar cycle. EIS uses a slit to disperse the light and observe the sun at very specific temperatures. Each full scan takes a few days to complete. This false-colored image is composed of three different temperatures, increasing from blue to red. During solar maximum, the atmosphere of the sun becomes full of very hot material above the active regions. EIS is designed to show us where that material comes from and where it is going.
(Go to EIS gallery for more.)