CMEs Galore (September 21, 2012)

Hi-res TIF (2.8M)

Movies: QT (large) (164M), QT (small) (5.3M), MPEG ( 17M), MP4 (4.6M), M4V (1.8M)

The Sun popped off no fewer than 10 Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) over a 4.5-day period (Sept. 16-21, 2012). The final one in this period was a lop-sided halo CME in which the particle cloud was seen heading out on all sides of the Sun. This was determined to have emerged from on the far side of the Sun. These LASCO C3 coronagraph images block out the Sun with an occulting disk with the white circle representing the size of the Sun. The rapid-fire pace of eruptions is another indication that the Sun is approaching its period of maximum activity, expected in 2013. The bright object moving out of the field of view to the left is Mercury.

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.