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| French skywatcher Jean-Pierre Brahic took this photo of the violent solar flare from the sunspot 1302 on the sun's surface on Sept. 22, 2011. Earth is superimposed for scale. CREDIT: Jean-Pierre Brahic |
An intrepid skywatcher has snapped an amazing photograph of a massive solar flare erupting from Sunspot 1302 is one of the most active sunspot groups in years.
A sunspot is a blemish on the sun caused by intense magnetic activity. The new photo, captured on Sept. 22 by skywatcher Jean-Pierre Brahic, shows
solar plasma magnetically hanging above the sun's surface after the Sunspot 1302 unleashed an X-class solar flare. The image includes an inset of Earth for a size comparison.
solar plasma magnetically hanging above the sun's surface after the Sunspot 1302 unleashed an X-class solar flare. The image includes an inset of Earth for a size comparison.
Solar flares are powerful storms on the sun that occur when energy stored in twisted magnetic fields (usually above sunspots) is suddenly released. Flares produce a burst of radiation from radio waves to X-rays and gamma-rays. They can also trigger intense solar explosions, called coronal mass ejections, which can hurl massive amounts of solar material into space.
Read more at Space.com
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