NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory began observing the sun on February 11, 2010, capturing more than a photo per second for 24 hours a day since then. The 200+ million photos and 2,600 terabytes of data captured provide a “unprecedentedly clear picture” of what happens on the surface.

The time-lapse above was released in honor of the project’s five-year anniversary. It’s a highlight video that packs the best photos from the last 5 years of sun watching into a glorious 3-minute experience for the public to enjoy.

(via NASA via CNET)