Todays pic is an animated view of a solar flare.
A Twisted Solar Eruptive Prominence
A huge eruptive prominence is seen moving out from our Sun in this condensed half-hour time-lapse sequence. Ten Earths could easily fit in the "claw" of this seemingly solar monster. This large prominence, though, is significant not only for its size, but its shape. The twisted figure eight shape indicates that a complex magnetic field threads through the emerging solar particles. Recent evidence of differential rotation inside the Sun might help account for the surface explosion. The sequence was taken early in the year 2000 by the Sun-orbiting SOHO satellite. Although large prominences and energetic Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are relatively rare, they are occurred more frequently near Solar Maximum, the time of peak sunspot and solar activity in the eleven-year solar cycle.
A large piccy (non animated), of the sun taken at the time of this erruption can be found here, this is a 899K Gif image.
Credit: SOHO Consortium, EIT, ESA, NASA
Previous Pic Of The Day posts
24th Feb 03
23rd Feb 03 Courtesy of Biffa
20th Feb 03
19th Feb 03
17th Feb 03
16th Feb 03
15th Feb 03
A Twisted Solar Eruptive Prominence
A huge eruptive prominence is seen moving out from our Sun in this condensed half-hour time-lapse sequence. Ten Earths could easily fit in the "claw" of this seemingly solar monster. This large prominence, though, is significant not only for its size, but its shape. The twisted figure eight shape indicates that a complex magnetic field threads through the emerging solar particles. Recent evidence of differential rotation inside the Sun might help account for the surface explosion. The sequence was taken early in the year 2000 by the Sun-orbiting SOHO satellite. Although large prominences and energetic Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are relatively rare, they are occurred more frequently near Solar Maximum, the time of peak sunspot and solar activity in the eleven-year solar cycle.
A large piccy (non animated), of the sun taken at the time of this erruption can be found here, this is a 899K Gif image.
Credit: SOHO Consortium, EIT, ESA, NASA
Previous Pic Of The Day posts
24th Feb 03
23rd Feb 03 Courtesy of Biffa
20th Feb 03
19th Feb 03
17th Feb 03
16th Feb 03
15th Feb 03
is that the first animated POTD we've had?
