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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Record Prominence Imaged by Solar Orbiter
Explanation: What's happened to our Sun? Last month, it produced the largest prominence ever imaged together with a complete solar disk . The record image, featured , was captured in ultraviolet light by the Sun-orbiting Solar Orbiter spacecraft . A quiescent solar prominence is a cloud of hot gas held above the Sun's surface by the Sun's magnetic field . This solar prominence was huge -- spanning a length rivaling the diameter of the Sun itself. Solar prominences may erupt unpredictably and expel hot gas into the Solar System via a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). When a CME strikes the Earth and its magnetosphere , bright auroras may occur . This prominence did produce a CME , but it was directed well away from the Earth. Although surely related to the Sun's changing magnetic field, the energy mechanism that creates and sustains a solar prominence remains a topic of research .
| Date | March 2, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Image Credit: Solar Orbiter , EUI Team , ESA & NASA ; h/t: Bum-Suk Yeom |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |