Visions of Our Local Star #16

The narrowband hydrogen-alpha filter used to take this monochrome image of the Sun enables us to peer into the chromosphere, the lower region of the solar atmosphere. Flame-like prominences, made of huge arcs of plasma, can be seen erupting out from the solar limb. They extend for thousands of miles and can last for months at a time. When prominences are seen against the bright disc of the Sun they appear as dark snaking lines known as filaments. They sometimes have a bushy appearance and can be tracked across the face of the Sun as it rotates. Sunspots are often found in groups and are planet sized regions characterised by an inky dark core, known as the umbra, and a lighter outer sec...View all