Visions of Our Local Star #4

The narrowband hydrogen-alpha filter used to take this image of the Sun enables us to peer into the chromosphere, the lower region of the solar atmosphere. The image has been inverted and is presented in a false colour palette, chosen both for its aesthetics and to highlight the features that show the dynamic and unpredictable nature of stars. Flame-like prominences, made of huge arcs of plasma, can be seen erupting out from the chromosphere. 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 snaking lines known as filaments. They sometimes have a bushy appearance and can be tracked across the ...View all