HathawayвЂ™s primary research interests include the nature and origin of the sunspot cycle and the fluid dynamics of the SunвЂ™s interior. Hathaway has served on numerous advisory committees as well as elected positions within scientific organizations.Дr. He has been the recipient of dozens of awards from within NASA and from the broader scientific community. He has written over 150 articles on the Sun and solar physics and has received three US patents. He came to NASAвЂ™s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL in 1984 where he has been a member of the solar physics group and served as its team leader from 1996 to 2010. He worked for two years as a Post-Doctoral Fellow in the Advanced Study Program at the National Center for Atmospheric Research before taking a 3-year position as an Assistant Astronomer at the National Solar Observatory site in Sunspot, NM. Hathaway received his doctorate in Astrophysics from the University of Colorado in Boulder, CO in 1979. David Hathaway, a solar scientist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, answered your questions about how our sun works and produces phenomena such as sunspots, solar flares, and solar storms - 'hot' topics that have communication and health implications for everyone on Earth.Д¬heck back on this page on Monday for a complete transcript of today's chat.Дr. But our beneficial space neighbor is also capable of some stellar 'temper tantrums.'

The sun is a huge, glowing ball that provides light, heat, and other energy to our Earth. One of these is our Earth, orbiting the sun at an average distance of about 92,960,000 miles (149,600,000 kilometers). Image credit: NASAД®ight planets and their moons, tens of thousands of asteroids, and trillions of comets revolve around the sun. Solar winds help power these atmospheric displays. Credit: NASAДЄurora borealis, seen from the International Space Station.

Credit: JAXAДЄrtist concept of a coronal mass ejection.

Sun corona temperature in kelvin