Soaring Solar Prominence (November 20, 2009)

Hi-res TIF image (3.6M)

Solar observers and the SOHO spacecraft were treated to the sight of a high-flying prominence (Nov. 18, 2009). Located near the 10 o'clock position, the prominence, as seen here in extreme UV light, extends upwards at least 18 times the size of Earth. It appears to have risen up from the far side of the Sun. It did not appear at all in an image taken six hours earlier with the same instrument and is gone in the ensuing image six hours later. Two other prominences poke out too above the lower edges of the Sun. Prominences are cooler clouds of gases suspended above the Sun by magnetic forces.

The Extreme UltraViolet Imager (EUVI) on the STEREO Behind spacecraft observed this event, and another eruptive prominence:

Quicktime Movie ( 17M)

SOHO began its Weekly Pick some time after sending a weekly image or video clip to the American Museum of Natural History (Rose Center) in New York City. There, the SOHO Weekly Pick is displayed with some annotations on a large plasma display.

If your institution would also like to receive the same Weekly Pick from us for display (usually in Photoshop or QuickTime format), please send your inquiry to steele.hill@gsfc.nasa.gov.