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Heliosphere
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Diagram showing the structure of the heliosphere with the solar system at the center, surrounded by labeled boundaries: termination shock, heliopause, and bow shock. Interstellar wind flows from the left, and the paths of Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft are marked as they travel outward. The solar apex direction is indicated with an arrow. interplanetary medium
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The orbits of the planets and other elements of the solar system, including asteroids, Kuiper belt, Oort cloud, comet
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Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.
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Diagram showing the structure of the heliosphere with the solar system at the center, surrounded by labeled boundaries: termination shock, heliopause, and bow shock. Interstellar wind flows from the left, and the paths of Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft are marked as they travel outward. The solar apex direction is indicated with an arrow.
Illustration of the heliosphere. The solar wind first encounters the interstellar medium at the bow shock. At the heliopause the outward pressure of the solar wind balances the pressure of the incoming interstellar medium.

Heliosphere

astronomy
Written by
Erik Gregersen
Erik Gregersen is a senior editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica, specializing in the physical sciences and technology. Before joining Britannica in 2007, he worked at the University of Chicago Press on the...
Erik Gregersen
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Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
Last updated
•History

Heliosphere, the region surrounding the Sun and the solar system that is filled with the solar magnetic field and the protons and electrons of the solar wind. The solar magnetic field in the heliosphere has a dipole structure. The magnetic field lines that are carried outward from the Sun by the solar wind remain attached to the Sun’s surface. Because of the Sun’s rotation, the lines are drawn into a spiral structure. In one hemisphere...

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