A Solar Prominence from SOHO
Explanation:
How can gas float above the Sun?
Twisted
magnetic fields arching from
the solar surface can trap ionized gas,
suspending it in huge looping structures.
These majestic
plasma arches are seen as
prominences
above the solar limb.
In 1999,
this dramatic and detailed image
was recorded by the Extreme
ultraviolet Image Telescope (EIT) on board
the space-based SOHO observatory
in the light emitted by
ionized Helium.
It shows hot plasma escaping into space as a fiery prominence breaks
free from magnetic confinement a hundred thousand kilometers above the Sun.
These awesome events
bear watching as they can
affect communications and power systems over
100 million kilometers away on
planet Earth.
In late 2020 our Sun passed the
solar minimum of its
11-year cycle and is now showing
increased surface activity.
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.
