Sun Is Not A Perfect Sphere, NASA Spacecraft Finds
Sunday, October 5, 2008 - 19:28
in Astronomy & Space
Scientists using NASA's RHESSI spacecraft have measured the roundness of the sun with unprecedented precision. They find that it is not a perfect sphere. During years of high solar activity the sun develops a thin "cantaloupe skin" that significantly increases its apparent oblateness: the sun's equatorial radius becomes slightly larger than its polar radius.