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READING:

Astronomers have taken the best-ever photos of the Sun. A team of researchers used a solar telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation in Hawaii. The researchers took very detailed images of the Sun's surface. The pictures show amazing new details about what is happening on the solar surface. In particular, the scientists pointed out hundreds of spiralling areas of activity, which look like twisters of fire. These might explain a lot about the Sun's energy and how solar flares are created. Astronomer Dr David Boboltz was excited about the photos. He called the Sun a "unique laboratory". He said: "It's our closest star, and it can help us understand some very basic laws of physics."

The new high-resolution images are the closest ever that scientists have zoomed in on the Sun. The photographs show a 5,000-km-wide area of our closest star. Scientists are particularly interested in photos that show what happens at the borders between the dark and bright regions of the Sun. This is where huge spirals of fire are created. It happens when two fluids move at different speeds and meet, causing a build-up of energy. A similar thing happens on Earth, but with ocean water, not fire. You can see this in ocean waves. Dr Boboltz said: "Once there's enough energy, it can then be released as a solar flare." He said the photos could help us to "figure out and eventually predict space weather".

Try easier levels. The listening is a little shorter, with less vocabulary.

Photos of the Sun - Level 0  |  Photos of the Sun - Level 1  |   Photos of the Sun - Level 2

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