Explanation:
Sometimes, the Sun itself seems to dance.
On just this past New Year's Eve, for example, NASA's Sun-orbiting
Solar Dynamic Observatory spacecraft imaged an
impressive prominence
erupting from the Sun's surface.
The
dramatic explosion was captured in ultraviolet light
in the
above time lapse video
covering four hours.
Of particular interest is the tangled
magnetic field
that directs a type of
solar ballet for the hot
plasma
as it falls back to the Sun.
The scale of the disintegrating
prominence is huge -- the entire
Earth would easily fit under the flowing
curtain of hot gas.
A quiescent
prominence typically lasts about a month, and may erupt in a
Coronal Mass Ejection (CME)
expelling hot gas into the
Solar System.
The energy mechanism that creates a
solar prominence is still a topic of
research.
As the Sun nears
Solar Maximum
this year,
solar activity like
eruptive prominences should be common.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
