APOD: 2024 May 26 Б A Solar Filament Erupts
Explanation:
What's happened to our Sun?
Nothing very unusual -- it just
threw a filament.
Toward the middle of 2012, a
long standing
solar filament suddenly erupted into space,
producing an energetic
coronal mass ejection (CME).
The filament had been held up for days by the Sun's ever changing
magnetic field and the timing of the eruption was
unexpected.
Watched closely
by the Sun-orbiting Solar Dynamics Observatory, the resulting
explosion
shot
electrons and ions into the Solar System, some of which arrived at Earth three days
later and impacted Earth's
magnetosphere, causing visible
auroras.
Loops of plasma surrounding the
active region
can be seen above the erupting filament in
the featured
ultraviolet image.
Our Sun is nearing the
most
active time in its
11-year cycle,
creating many
coronal holes
that allow for the ejection of
charged particles
into space.
As before, these charged particles can
create auroras.
Your Sky Surprise:
What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
