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Credit & Copyright: Hawk Wolinski
Explanation:
What's that on the Sun?
Although it may look like a flowing version of the
Eiffel Tower,
it is a
solar prominence that is actually much bigger -- about the
height of Jupiter.
The huge prominence
emerged about ten days ago, hovered over the
Sun's surface for about two days,
and then erupted -- throwing a
coronal mass ejection (CME) into the Solar System.
The featured video,
captured from the astrophotographer's backyard in
Hendersonville,
Tennessee,
USA, shows an hour time-lapse played both forwards and backwards.
That CME did not impact the Earth, but our Sun had
unleashed
other recent CMEs that not only triggered
Earthly auroras, but puffed out the
Earth's atmosphere enough to
cause just-launched
Starlink satellites to
fall back.
Activity on the Sun, including
sunspots,
prominences, CMEs and
flares, continues to increase as the
Sun evolves away from a deep
minimum in its 11-year
magnetic cycle.
Birthday Surprise:
What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Sun - solar prominence
Publications with words: Sun - solar prominence
See also:
- APOD: 2024 February 19 Á Looking Sideways from the Parker Solar Probe
- Circling the Sun
- APOD: 2023 December 11 Á Solar Minimum versus Solar Maximum
- APOD: 2023 November 19 Á Space Station, Solar Prominences, Sun
- APOD: 2023 October 25 Á Gone in 60 Seconds: A Green Flash Sunset
- Circular Sun Halo
- APOD: 2023 August 1 Á Monster Solar Prominence