                        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.

                               2024 August 18

                    A Solar Prominence Eruption from SDO
                   Image Credit: NASA/Goddard/SDO AIA Team

   Explanation: One of the most spectacular solar sights is an erupting
   prominence. In 2011, NASA's Sun-orbiting Solar Dynamic Observatory
   spacecraft imaged an impressively large prominence erupting from the
   surface. The dramatic explosion was captured in ultraviolet light in
   the featured time lapse video covering 90 minutes, where a new frame
   was taken every 24 seconds. The scale of the prominence is huge -- the
   entire Earth would easily fit under the flowing curtain of hot gas. A
   solar prominence is channeled and sometimes held above the Sun's
   surface by the Sun's magnetic field. 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 a continuing topic of research. Our Sun
   is again near solar maximum and so very active, featuring numerous
   erupting prominences and CMEs, one of which resulted in picturesque
   auroras just over the past week.

                       Tomorrow's picture: star cocoon
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

