Trinity Researchers Launch New Smartphone Application for Viewing Images of the Sun

Posted on: 16 December 2011

A group of researchers from Trinity’s School of Physics and School of Computer Science and Statistics celebrated the launch of a new website application that will allows users view the most recent NASA and European Space Agency (ESA) images of the Sun using their Smartphones.  The web application is linked to www.SolarMonitor.org, an online tool that gives users access to pictures of the Sun from both ground based observatories and ESA and NASA satellites.  The group, led by Dr Peter Gallagher, launched the application at the annual European Space Weather Week conference in Belgium recently. 

Image of sun in extreme ultra-violet depicting the type of images expected from the Proba-2 satellite.  (Image: NASA / ESA).

The application can be access by browsing to www.SolarMonitor.org on your Smartphone which will bring you to a webpage with a set of near real-time images of the Sun highlighting a range of information such as the active regions on the Sun, show solar flares and X-ray data.  Information for the application is gathered from a number of observatories and satellites such as SOHO, STEREO, Hinode, SDO, Proba 2 GONG, BBSO and NOAA to name but a few.