Close-up footage of our sun from a NASA spacecraft shows intense activity on the solar surface. http://abcn.ws/2k4SO7j | ABC News

This incredible month-long timelapse footage of the Sun, captured recently by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, demonstrates just how active the Sun is now. Vast sunspot groups trap energy in the form of plasma (superheated gas) within magnetic fields; when these break, massive solar flares emit that energy into space. If Earthbound, the flares give rise to Aurora, which explains why there has been so much activity lately! | Go Stargazing

Two Weeks in the Life of a Sunspot via NASA Sun Science Our satellites tracked this sunspot for nearly two weeks (July 5-17). It put on a show during its 13-day trip across the face of the sun, producing several solar flares, a coronal mass ejection and a solar energetic particle event. https://go.nasa.gov/2v357pO | NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center