Visions of Our Local Star #6

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 is presented in a false colour palette, chosen both for its aesthetics and to highlight some of 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 dark snaking lines known as filaments. They sometimes have a bushy appearance and can be tracked across the face of th...View all