NASA has released a spectacular 4K video of the Sun, taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) between January 1, 2015, and January 28, 2016.

SDO takes pictures of the Sun every 12 seconds in 10 different wavelengths. The video shows the Sun in the extreme ultraviolet, which is used to highlight the hottest material on the Sun’s surface (extreme UV corresponds to a temperature of 600,000 Kelvins) and makes it easier to see the Sun’s rotation on its axis.

The Sun had an active year and it’s visible in the SDO images. Flares, eruptions, and prominences periodically disrupt the corona of our star, showing how active and dynamic it really is.   

The video is filmed in Ultra-HD (3840 by 2160) and at 29.97 frames per second, with each frame representing two hours. SDO is tasked with monitoring the surface of the Sun, so scientists can understand the effects of the Sun on Earth and near-Earth space. Studying the Sun also helps us understand stars better, being that it's the closest one to us.