The sun may have swirling polar vortices similar to those on Earth, but powered by a very different source, according to a new study.
Current observations of the sun are limited to a face-on view, obscuring what can be seen transpiring at the poles — but researchers from the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) simulated the sun's polar vortices using computer models, which suggest they're driven by powerful magnetic fields (whereas on Earth, with standard tornadoes, they are fueled by temperature differences in the planet's atmosphere).
