View source for Solar Dynamics Observatory

{{Short description|NASA mission, launched in 2010 to GSO}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox spaceflight
| name              = Solar Dynamics Observatory
| names_list        = SDO
| image             = Solar Dynamics Observatory 1.jpg
| image_caption     = Solar Dynamics Observatory satellite
| image_size        = 300px

| mission_type      = [[Sun|Solar research]]<ref name="SDO Guide">{{cite web|url=http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/assets/docs/SDO_Guide.pdf|title=SDO Our Eye on the Sun|publisher=NASA|access-date=2010-02-13}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
| operator          = [[Goddard Space Flight Center|NASA GSFC]]<ref name="SDO Specifications">{{cite web|author=Dean Pesnell|author2=Kevin Addison|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory: SDO Specifications
|url=http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/mission/project/specs.php|publisher=NASA|date=5 February 2010|access-date=2010-02-13|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100130050903/http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/mission/project/specs.php|archive-date=30 January 2010}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
| COSPAR_ID         = 2010-005A
| SATCAT            = 36395
| website           = http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov
| mission_duration  = 5 years (planned)<br/>{{time interval|11 February 2010 15:23|show=ymd|sep=,}} (elapsed)

| spacecraft_type   = Solar Dynamics Observatory
| manufacturer      = [[Goddard Space Flight Center]]
| dry_mass          = {{cvt|1700|kg}}
| launch_mass       = {{cvt|3100|kg}}
| payload_mass      = {{cvt|290|kg}}
| dimensions        = 
| power             =

| launch_date       = 11 February 2010, 15:23:00 [[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]]
| launch_rocket     = [[Atlas V]] 401
| launch_site       = [[Cape Canaveral Space Force Station|Cape Canaveral]], [[Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 41|SLC-41]]
| launch_contractor = [[United Launch Alliance]]

| disposal_type     = 
| deactivated       = 
| last_contact      =

| orbit_reference   = [[Geocentric orbit]]<ref name="n2yo">{{cite web|url=http://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=36395|title=SDO 2010-005A|publisher=N2YO|date=24 January 2015|access-date=25 January 2015}}</ref>
| orbit_regime      = [[Geosynchronous orbit]]
| orbit_longitude   = 102° West
| apsis             = gee

| insignia          = Solar Dynamics Observatory insignia.png
| insignia_caption  = Solar Dynamics Observatory patch
| insignia_size     = 220px

| programme          = '''[[Large Strategic Science Missions]]'''<br><small>''Heliophysics Division''</small>
| previous_mission   = 
| next_mission       = [[Van Allen Probes]]
| programme2         = '''''[[Living With a Star]]'' program'''
}}

[[File:SDO Greatest Hits.ogv|thumb|upright=1.3|right|The detailed images recorded by SDO in 2011–2012 have helped scientists uncover new secrets about the Sun.]]

The '''Solar Dynamics Observatory''' ('''SDO''') is a [[NASA]] mission which has been observing the [[Sun]] since 2010.<ref name=NTRS>{{cite report|author=Bourkland, Kristin L.|author2=Liu, Kuo-Chia |title=Verification of the Solar Dynamics Observatory High Gain Antenna Pointing Algorithm Using Flight Data|date=25 July 2011 |publisher=American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics|hdl=2060/20110015278}}</ref> Launched on 11 February 2010, the observatory is part of the [[Living With a Star]] (LWS) program.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://spaceflightnow.com/atlas/av021/status.html|title=Mission Status Center: Atlas V SDO |author=Justin Ray|publisher=Spaceflight Now|access-date=2010-02-13}}</ref>

The goal of the LWS program is to develop the scientific understanding necessary to effectively address those aspects of the connected [[Sun]]–[[Earth]] system directly affecting life on Earth and its society. The goal of the SDO is to understand the influence of the Sun on the Earth and near-Earth space by studying the solar atmosphere on small scales of space and time and in many wavelengths simultaneously. SDO has been investigating how the [[Stellar magnetic field|Sun's magnetic field]] is generated and structured, how this stored magnetic energy is converted and released into the [[heliosphere]] and [[geospace]] in the form of [[solar wind]], energetic particles, and variations in the [[solar irradiance]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Dean Pesnell|author2=Kevin Addison|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory: About The SDO Mission
|url=http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/mission/about.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070630062249/http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/mission/about.php|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 June 2007|publisher=NASA|date=5 February 2010|access-date=2010-02-13}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

== General ==
[[File:The Many Eyes of SDO.ogv|thumb|upright=1.3|right|This visualization covers the same time span of 17 hours over the full wavelength range of the SDO.]]

The SDO spacecraft was developed at NASA's [[Goddard Space Flight Center]] in [[Greenbelt, Maryland]], and launched on 11 February 2010, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station ([[Cape Canaveral Space Force Station|CCAFS]]). The primary mission lasted five years and three months, with expendables expected to last at least ten years.<ref name=Guide/> Some consider SDO to be a follow-on mission to the [[Solar and Heliospheric Observatory]] (SOHO).<ref>{{cite web|title=Solar and Heliospheric Observatory Homepage|url=http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov|publisher=NASA /ESA|date=February 9, 2010|access-date=February 13, 2010}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

SDO is a [[Three-axis stabilization|three-axis stabilized spacecraft]], with two [[Solar panel|solar arrays]], and two high-gain antennas, in an inclined [[geosynchronous orbit]] around [[Earth]].

The spacecraft includes three instruments: 
* the Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) built in partnership with the [[University of Colorado Boulder]]'s [[Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics]] (LASP), 
* the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) built in partnership with [[Stanford University]], and 
* the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) built in partnership with the [[Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory]] (LMSAL).

Data which are collected by the craft are made available as soon as possible after reception.<ref name=sdo-facts>{{cite web|url=http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/assets/docs/sdo_factsheet.pdf|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory — Exploring the Sun in High Definition|publisher=NASA|access-date=February 13, 2010}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

=== Extended mission ===
As of February 2020, SDO is expected to remain operational until 2030.<ref>{{cite web|last=Johnson-Groh|first=Mara|url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/ten-things-we-ve-learned-about-the-sun-from-nasa-s-sdo-this-decade|title=Ten Things We've Learned About the Sun From NASA's SDO This Decade|publisher=NASA|date=February 11, 2020|access-date=March 13, 2020}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

==Instruments==
=== Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) ===
[[File:Getting NASA's SDO into Focus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|left|Comparison of HMI Continuum images immediately after an [[eclipse]], and then after the sensor has re-warmed.]]

The [[Helioseismology|Helioseismic]] and Magnetic Imager (HMI), led from [[Stanford University]] in [[Stanford, California]], studies solar variability and characterizes the Sun's interior and the various components of magnetic activity. HMI takes high-resolution measurements of the longitudinal and vector magnetic field by viewing the entirety of the Sun's disk, with emphasis on various concentrations of metals in the Sun; specifically it passes the light (the variety of usable frequencies of which are centered on the solar spectrum's 617.3-nm [[Fraunhofer line]]) through five filter instruments including a [[Lyot filter]] and two [[Michelson interferometer]]s to rapidly and frequently create [[Doppler imaging|Doppler image]]s and [[Solar magnetogram|magnetogram]]s. The full-disk focus and advanced magnetometers improve on the capabilities of [[Solar and Heliospheric Observatory|SOHO]]'s MDI instrument which could only focus within the line of sight with limited magnetic data.<ref>{{cite web|author=Dean Pesnell|author2=Kevin Addison|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory: SDO Instruments
|url=http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/mission/instruments.php|publisher=NASA|date=5 February 2010|access-date=2010-02-13}} {{PD-notice}}</ref><ref name="HMI Implementation 2011">{{cite web | title=Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager for SDO | website=Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager for SDO | date=March 4, 2011 | url=http://hmi.stanford.edu/Description/hmi-overview/hmi-overview.html#implementation | access-date=November 12, 2023}}</ref>

HMI produces data to determine the interior sources and mechanisms of solar variability and how the physical processes inside the Sun are related to surface magnetic field and activity. It also produces data to enable estimates of the coronal magnetic field for studies of variability in the extended solar atmosphere. HMI observations will enable establishing the relationships between the internal dynamics and magnetic activity in order to understand solar variability and its effects.<ref>{{cite web|author=Solar Physics Research Group|url=http://hmi.stanford.edu/Description/HMI_Overview.html|title=Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager Investigation|publisher=Stanford University|access-date=2010-02-13}}</ref>

=== Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) ===
<!-- Commented out because image was deleted: [[File:EVE logo.png|thumb|right|Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment logo]] -->

The Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) measures the [[Sun]]'s [[extreme ultraviolet]] irradiance with improved [[spectral resolution]], temporal cadence, accuracy, and precision over preceding measurements made by [[TIMED]] SEE, [[Solar and Heliospheric Observatory|SOHO]], and [[Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment|SORCE]] [[X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy|XPS]]. Some key requirements for EVE are to measure the solar EUV irradiance spectrum with 0.1 nm spectral resolution and with 20 sec cadence. These drive the EVE design to include grating spectrographs with array detectors so that all EUV wavelengths can be measured simultaneously. The instrument incorporates physics-based models in order to further scientific understanding of the relationship between solar [[Extreme ultraviolet|EUV]] variations and magnetic variation changes in the Sun.<ref name=EVE>{{cite web|url=http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/ |title=SDO – EVE-Extreme ultraviolet Variability Experiment|publisher=Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716024548/http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/ |archive-date=July 16, 2011|url-status=dead|date=May 27, 2010|access-date=March 12, 2020}}</ref>

The Sun's output of energetic extreme ultraviolet [[photon]]s is primarily what heats the [[Earth]]'s [[Mesosphere|upper atmosphere]] and creates the [[ionosphere]]. Solar EUV [[radiation]] output undergoes constant changes, both moment to moment and over the Sun's 11-year [[solar cycle]], and these changes are important to understand because they have a significant impact on [[Atmospheric physics|atmospheric heating]], [[Drag (physics)|satellite drag]], and [[communication]]s system degradation, including disruption of the [[Global Positioning System]].<ref name=EVEimprovements>{{cite web |first=Tom|last=Woods|title=Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) {{!}} Analogy on How the SDO EVE Measurements of the Solar Extreme Ultraviolet Irradiance will be Greatly Improved|url=http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/news/eve_news_improvements.pdf|publisher=Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716025103/http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/news/eve_news_improvements.pdf|archive-date=July 16, 2011|url-status=dead|date=September 12, 2007|access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

The EVE instrument package was built by the [[University of Colorado Boulder]]'s [[Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics]] (LASP), with Dr. Tom Woods as [[principal investigator]],<ref name=Guide/> and was delivered to NASA [[Goddard Space Flight Center]] on 7 September 2007.<ref>{{cite web|author=Rani Gran|title=First Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO) Instrument Arrives at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
|url=http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2007/sdo_inst_arrival.html|publisher=NASA|date=7 September 2009|access-date=2010-02-17}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> The instrument provides improvements of up to 70% in spectral resolution measurements in the wavelengths below 30&nbsp;nm, and a 30% improvement in time cadence by taking measurements every 10 seconds over a 100% [[duty cycle]].<ref name=EVEimprovements/>

=== Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) ===
The Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), led from the [[Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory]] (LMSAL), provides continuous full-disk observations of the solar [[chromosphere]] and [[solar corona|corona]] in seven [[extreme ultraviolet]] (EUV) channels, spanning a temperature range from approximately 20,000 Kelvin to in excess of 20 million Kelvin. The 12-second cadence of the image stream with 4096 by 4096 pixel images at 0.6 arcsec/pixel provides unprecedented views of the various phenomena that occur within the evolving solar outer atmosphere.

The AIA science investigation is led by LMSAL, which also operates the instrument and – jointly with Stanford University – runs the Joint Science Operations Center from which all of the data are served to the worldwide scientific community, as well as the general public. LMSAL designed the overall instrumentation and led its development and integration. The four telescopes providing the individual light feeds for the instrument were designed and built at the [[Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory]] (SAO).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aia.lmsal.com/|title=AIA – Atmospheric Imaging Assembly|publisher=Lockheed Martin|date=3 February 2010|access-date=2010-02-14}}</ref> Since beginning its operational phase on 1 May 2010, AIA has operated successfully with unprecedented EUV image quality.

{| class=wikitable
|-
! AIA wavelength channel !! Source <ref>{{cite web|url=http://aia.lmsal.com/public/instrument.htm|title=Atmospheric Imaging Assembly – Descriptions and Manuals of Instruments, Data, and Software Packages |publisher=Lockheed Martin|access-date=2012-06-27}}</ref> !! Region of solar atmosphere !! Characteristic<br/>temperature
|-
| [[Visible spectrum|White light]] (450 [[nanometer|nm]]) || continuum || [[Photosphere]] || 5000 [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 170 [[Nanometre|nm]]  || continuum || Temperature minimum, [[photosphere]] || 5000 [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 160 [[Nanometre|nm]]  || [[carbon|C]] IV + continuum || [[Solar transition region|Transition region]] and upper [[photosphere]] || 100,000 and 5,000 [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 33.5 [[Nanometre|nm]] || Fe XVI || [[Active region]] [[solar corona|corona]] || 2.5 million [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 30.4 [[Nanometre|nm]] || [[helium|He]] II || [[Chromosphere]] and [[solar transition region|transition region]] || 50,000 [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 21.1 [[Nanometre|nm]] || Fe XIV || [[Active region]] [[stellar corona|corona]] || 2 million [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 19.3 [[Nanometre|nm]] || Fe XII, XXIV || [[Solar corona|Corona]] and hot [[Solar flare|flare]] [[Plasma (physics)|plasma]] || 1.2 million and 20 million [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 17.1 [[Nanometre|nm]] || [[iron|Fe]] IX || Quiet [[solar corona|corona]], upper [[solar transition region|transition region]] || 630,000 [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 13.1 [[Nanometre|nm]] || Fe VIII, XX, XXIII || [[Solar flare|Flaring]] regions || 400,000, 10 million, and 16 million [[Kelvin|K]]
|-
| 9.4 [[Nanometre|nm]]  || Fe XVIII || [[Solar flare|Flaring]] regions || 6.3 million [[Kelvin|K]]
|}

Photographs of the Sun in these various regions of the spectrum can be seen at NASA's SDO Data website.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory|work=Goddard Space Flight Center|publisher=NASA|access-date=March 13, 2020}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> Images and movies of the Sun seen on any day of the mission, including within the last half-hour, can be found at [http://sdowww.lmsal.com/suntoday/ The Sun Today].

== Communications ==
SDO down-links science data ([[K band (IEEE)|K-band]]) from its two onboard [[high-gain antenna]]s, and [[telemetry]] ([[S band|S-band]]) from its two onboard [[omnidirectional antenna]]s. The ground station consists of two dedicated (redundant) 18-meter radio antennas in [[White Sands Missile Range]], [[New Mexico]], constructed specifically for SDO. Mission controllers operate the spacecraft remotely from the [[Mission control center|Mission Operations Center]] at [[NASA]] [[Goddard Space Flight Center]]. The combined data rate is about 130&nbsp;Mbit/s (150&nbsp;Mbit/s with overhead, or 300 Msymbols/s with rate 1/2 [[Convolutional code|convolutional encoding]]), and the craft generates approximately 1.5 [[Byte|Terabytes]] of data per day (equivalent to downloading around 500,000 songs).<ref name=Guide>{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/417176main_SDO_Guide_CMR.pdf|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory — Our Eye on the Sky|publisher=NASA|date=February 1, 2010|access-date=February 13, 2010}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

== Launch ==
<!-- Note: all date/time should be in YYYY-MM-DD 24hh:mm:ss format for sorting purposes, the template parses and displays in more readable format. -->
{{LaunchAttempt
| date1           = 2010-02-10 15:26 UTC
| result1         = Scrubbed
| reason1         = Weather (high winds) <ref>{{cite news|last=Dunn|first=Marcia|url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gTdD8jyilRavU5Xf6XtGDUAvlUfgD9DPE5L00|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100219073751/http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gTdD8jyilRavU5Xf6XtGDUAvlUfgD9DPE5L00|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 February 2010|title=Stiff wind delays NASA launch of solar observatory|agency=The Associated Press|access-date=10 February 2010}}</ref>
| decision_date1  = 2010-02-10, 11:22 EST
| decision_clock1 = -3:59, immediately after T-4:00 hold
| weathergo1      = 40% <ref name="forecast">{{cite web|url=http://www.patrick.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-070716-027.pdf|title=AFD-070716-027|publisher=United States Airforce, 45th Weather Squadron |access-date=7 February 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613170122/http://www.patrick.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-070716-027.pdf|archive-date=13 June 2011}}</ref>
| notes1          = window 10:26 to 11:26 EST, attempts made at 10:26, 10:56 and 11:26 EST

| date2           = 2010-02-11, 15:23 UTC
| result2         = Success
| reason2         = 
| decision_date2  = 
| decision_clock2 = 
| weathergo2      = 60% <ref name="forecast"/>
| notes2          = Window: 10:23 to 11:23 EST
}}

[[NASA]]'s [[Launch Services Program]] at [[Kennedy Space Center]] managed the payload integration and launch.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://solarsystem.jpl.nasa.gov/news/display.cfm?News_ID=33515|access-date=February 13, 2010|title=A New Eye on the Sun|publisher=NASA|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619151133/http://solarsystem.jpl.nasa.gov/news/display.cfm?News_ID=33515|archive-date=June 19, 2010}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> The SDO launched from [[Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 41]] (SLC-41), utilizing an [[Atlas V]]-401 rocket with a [[RD-180]] powered [[Common Core Booster]], which has been developed to meet the [[National Security Space Launch|Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle]] (EELV) program requirements.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/412582main_SDO-508.pdf|access-date=February 13, 2010|title=SDO Launch Services Program}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

Sun dog phenomenon: Moments after launch, SDO's Atlas V rocket penetrated a [[cirrus cloud]] which created visible [[shock wave]]s in the sky and destroyed the alignment of ice crystals that were forming a [[sun dog]] visible to onlookers.<ref>{{cite web|last=Phillips|first=Tony|url=https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/11feb_sundogmystery/|title=SDO Sundog Mystery|publisher=NASA|date=February 11, 2011|access-date=March 13, 2020}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

After launch, the spacecraft was deployed from the Atlas V into an [[orbit]] around the [[Earth]] with an initial [[Apsis|perigee]] of about {{cvt|2500|km}}.<ref name=SDO-mp/> 

=== Transfer to final Orbit ===
[[File:Animation of Solar Dynamics Observatory trajectory.gif|thumb|upright=1.3|right|Animation of Solar Dynamics Observatory{{'s}} trajectory from 11 February 2010 to 11 April 2010<br>{{legend2|magenta|Solar Dynamics Observatory}}{{·}}{{legend2|RoyalBlue|[[Earth]]}}]]

SDO then underwent a series of orbit-raising maneuvers over a few weeks which adjusted its orbit until the spacecraft reached its planned [[Circular orbit|circular]], [[geosynchronous orbit]] at an altitude of {{cvt|35789|km}}, at 102° West [[longitude]], inclined at 28.5°.<ref name=SDO-mp>{{cite web |url=http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sdo/main/index.html|access-date=February 13, 2010|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory|date=February 11, 2010|first=Jim|last=Wilson}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> This orbit was chosen to allow 24/7 communications to/from the [[Ground station|fixed ground station]], and to minimise [[solar eclipse]]s to about an hour a day for only a few weeks a year.

== Mission mascot - Camilla ==
'''Camilla Corona''' is a [[rubber chicken]] and is the mission [[mascot]] for SDO. It is part of the [[Science outreach|Education and public outreach]] team and assists with various functions to help educate the public, mainly children, about the SDO mission, facts about the Sun and [[Space weather]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/swx/index.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111019111352/http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/swx/index.php|url-status=dead|archive-date=2011-10-19|title=Solar Dynamics Observatory|website=sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov|access-date=2018-05-03}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> Camilla also assists in cross-informing the public about other [[NASA]] missions and space related projects. Camilla Corona SDO uses [[social media]] to interact with fans.

== Image gallery ==
<gallery class="center" perrow="4">
File:11742 SDO-Year 5 ProRes 1920x1080 2997.webm|SDO: Year 5
File:Camilla Corona SDO.jpg|Camilla Corona SDO
File:Solar Dynamics Observatory.png|SDO 3-D schematic
File:SDO spacecraft detailed.jpg|SDO Instruments
File:SDO from above.jpg|SDO ready to be placed on Atlas rocket for launch.
File:SDO Launch and Deployment.ogg|An animation showing the deployment of SDO.
File:SDO first light.png|First light image from the SDO showing a prominence eruption.
File:SDO's Ultra-high Definition View of 2012 Venus Transit (304 Angstrom Full Disc 02).jpg|An image of the [[2012 transit of Venus]] taken by SDO.
File:Solar Dynamics Observatory - Argo view.ogg|This movie opens with a full-disk view of the Sun in visible wavelengths. Then the filters are applied to small pie-shaped wedges of the Sun.
File:NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory- Year 7 Ultra HD (4k).webm|SDO has now captured nearly seven years worth of ultra-high resolution solar footage. This time lapse shows that full run from two of SDO's instruments.
</gallery>

== Stamps ==
[[File:NASA Sun Science Forever Stamps - 2021.png|thumb|upright=1.7|right|USPS-issued [[forever stamps]] featuring images of the Sun]]

In 2021, the United States Postal Service released a series of forever [[Postage stamp|stamps]] using images of the Sun taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory. <ref name="STAMPS2021">{{cite web|url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2021/the-us-postal-service-to-issue-nasa-sun-science-forever-stamps|title=The U.S. Postal Service to Issue NASA Sun Science Forever Stamps|publisher=NASA|date=15 January 2021|access-date=19 January 2021}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Spaceflight}}
* [[Heliophysics]]
* [[Advanced Composition Explorer]]
* [[Parker Solar Probe]]
* [[Van Allen Probes|Radiation Belt Storm Probes]] (Van Allen Probes)
* [[Richard R. Fisher]]
* [[Solar and Heliospheric Observatory]] (SOHO)
* [[STEREO]] (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory), launched 2006, 1 of 2 spacecraft still operational.
* [[Wind (spacecraft)]], launched 1994, still operational.
* [[List of heliophysics missions]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Solar Dynamics Observatory}}
* [http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/ Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) mission website]
* [http://www.n2yo.com/?s=36395 Where is the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) right now?]
* [http://www.mps.mpg.de/projects/seismo/NA4/SDO_outreach.html SDO Outreach Material], HELAS
* [http://cometal-comets.blogspot.com/2011/07/sdo-sees-soho-comet.html Inbound SOHO comet disintegrates as seen in SDO AIA images] (Cometal 14 July 2011)
* [https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=187221227991775 History of SDO patch], Facebook
* [http://fenyi.solarobs.unideb.hu/ESA/HMIDD.html Sunspot Database based on SDO (HMI) satellite observations from 2010 to nowadays with the newest data.] ([[File:Flag of Hungary.svg|20px|link=|Solar Observatory - Debrecen, Hungary]])
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/136797589@N04/albums/72157666090419309/with/37787152294/ Album] of images and videos by Seán Doran, based on SDO imagery, and a longer (24 min.) YouTube video: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2cA_eo6izE ''Sun Dance'']
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-41gAPmUG0 SDO 5-year timelapse video of the Sun]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3QQQu7QLoM SDO 10-year timelapse video of the Sun]

=== Instruments ===
* [http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/ Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430191148/http://lasp.colorado.edu/eve/ |date=30 April 2010 }}, [[University of Colorado at Boulder|University of Colorado]]
* [http://aia.lmsal.com/ ATMOSPHERIC IMAGING ASSEMBLY (AIA)], [[Lockheed Martin]]
* [http://hmi.stanford.edu/ Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI)], [[Stanford]]
* [http://jsoc.stanford.edu/ Joint Science Operations Center – Science Data Processing HMI – AIA]

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