First Light: Great Pics of Sun w/ New NASA Space Telescope

(Image Source: Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics/NASA)

Rebecca J. Rosen Jul 25 2013, 3:12 PM ET

Last month, NASA launched a new telescope, known as IRIS, into space to study the Sun. Today we got our first glimpse of what IRIS is seeing, and ... wow.

IRIS, the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, is part of NASA's "Small Explorer' program and is tasked with investigating physical conditions of the Sun. 
 

Early evidence suggests that IRIS is going to be a feast for those who love gorgeous pictures of space.
 

Even NASA's press release bubbled with excitement:

The moment when a telescope first opens its doors represents the culmination of years of work and planning -- while simultaneously laying the groundwork for a wealth of research and answers yet to come. It is a moment of excitement and perhaps even a little uncertainty. On July 17, 2013, the international team of scientists and engineers who supported and built NASA's Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, or IRIS, all lived through that moment. As the spacecraft orbited around Earth, the door of the telescope opened to view the mysterious lowest layers of the sun's atmosphere and the results thus far are nothing short of amazing. The data is crisp and clear, showing unprecedented detail of this little-observed region.

 More - Link >>> http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/07/nasas-newest-space-telescope-sends-back-its-first-images-of-the-sun-and-theyre-gorgeous/278115/

NASA News Release - "NASA's IRIS Telescope Offers First Glimpse of Sun's Mysterious Atmosphere"

Link >>> http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/iris-telescope-first-glimpse-of-suns-mysterious-atmosphere/index.html#.UfGsaDeyK3I

More on the IRIS spacecraft and mission:
Link >>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interface_Region_Imaging_Spectrograph 

Sources: NASA, The Atlantic Magazine.

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