Maol
Unlike tornadoes on Earth, which are shaped by wind, tornadoes on the sun are controlled by magnetism. Solar magnetic fields twist in a furious spiral, dragging clouds of plasma around with them.
It looks to me more like a dust devil. We have them often in the dry desert areas of the South West.
They are MUCH smaller than a tornado. You might see one crossing your own yard, or across an open field.
A typical footprint might be the size of a car or sometimes larger.
They pick up the dirt and debris from the ground and spiral it up into the atmosphere hundreds of feet.
Because there are "Dust Devils" on Mars, with a very thin atmosphere, I would say that they are not shaped by the winds
or by rising hot air, but are shaped by electromagnetic forces or currents.
As nick shows, they are not a new phenomenon.
Maol [quote]Unlike tornadoes on Earth, which are shaped by wind, tornadoes on the sun are controlled by magnetism. Solar magnetic fields twist in a furious spiral, dragging clouds of plasma around with them.[/quote]
It looks to me more like a dust devil. We have them often in the dry desert areas of the South West.
They are MUCH smaller than a tornado. You might see one crossing your own yard, or across an open field.
A typical footprint might be the size of a car or sometimes larger.
They pick up the dirt and debris from the ground and spiral it up into the atmosphere hundreds of feet.
Because there are "Dust Devils" on Mars, with a very thin atmosphere, I would say that they are not shaped by the winds
or by rising hot air, but are shaped by electromagnetic forces or currents.
As nick shows, they are not a new phenomenon.