In footage captured from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) NASA has been able to put together an hour long time lapse video. In the video you can see it go through “solar minimum” and “solar maximum.”
The  Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) was sent up to study the sun and was only designed to last five years. It lasted twice that and now we have a breathtaking video of the sun.
In solar minimum you get a few bursts of light and some solar flares. Minimal activity but still beautiful. Around the halfway point you can see some more movement as the sun enters solar maximum. As you watch it then starts to decrease and go back into a more reserved state.
Because they were able to put this together and gather so much data we now have a better understanding of sun cycles. This could improve everything from functionality of satellites to better predicting health effects on astronauts.
