The force lifting this huge mass of plasma so high against the force of gravity is the solar magnetic field. This visualization shows the essential physics for the support process of a solar prominence. The overlying curved lines are the polar magnetic field lines. The underlying lines are the ones that produce and can support the mass of the prominences against solar gravitation. The image shows the 3D reconstruction of a microstructure from a high-purity steel sample.
Precipitates appear as elongated or blocky structures within the microstructure.
Before the 3D reconstruction, scientists thought the precipitates were disconnected from the microstructure. Right and left eye images are sequentially displayed by the graphics computer. Shutter glasses, synchronized with the computer by use of infrared emitters, block the right eye when the left image is shown and vice versa. A magnetic tracker detects the position and orientation of the user's head and joystick. Head tracking is used to show the correct perspective according to the user's position, while the joystick is used to navigate in the virtual environment.