A Japanese spacecraft has spotted two huge holes in the sun -- gateways for solar material and gas to spill out into space.
Scientists call the sun holes "coronal holes." They are gaps in the sun's magnetic field which make a hole through the star's super-hot outer atmosphere -- the corona -- allowing gas to escape, according to a NASA description.
Japan's Hinode sun-watching satellite photographed the sun's two coronal holes on Feb. 1. In the image, one coronal hole appears near the top center of the sun while another one -- a polar coronal hole -- is visible near the bottom of the view.
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/...un/?test=faces
Note: Published February 14, 2011