However, data has been collected throughout the Solar System, and the Sun's effects extend well beyond our outermost planet, throughout what is referred to as the heliosphere . The heliosphere is the area in space that contains our solar system, solar wind, and the entire solar magnetic field. It extends well beyond the orbit of the outermost planet of our Solar System, out to the heliopause , thought to extend 100,000,000,000 miles from the Sun . From the diagram, you can see that the effects of the Sun extend past the yellow disk we see in the sky, extending far into space. Bow Shock - The shock wave caused by the blast of the interstellar wind particles against the Sun's heliosphere.
Interstellar wind is slowed and heated very rapidly as it arrives at the bow shock.
Several factors have made this type of study more feasible. These spacecraft collect valuable data about the speed of the solar wind , and magnetic field information. The solar wind is the plasma or ionized gas of charged particles coming out of the Sun in all directions. Additionally, the ability to archive and manipulate data has allowed for the creation of data visualizers, where huge amounts of data can be graphically accessed by both amateur and professional scientists. It allows you to select a subset from the available OMNI data to view or retrieve.