Solar Prominence

In solar physics, a prominence, sometimes referred to as a filament,[a] is a large plasma and magnetic field structure extending outward from the Sun's surface, often in a loop shape. Prominences are anchored to the Sun's surface in the much brighter photosphere, and extend outwards into the solar corona. While the corona consists of extremely hot plasma, prominences contain much cooler plasma, similar in composition to that of the chromosphere. Prominences form over timescales of about a day and may persist in the corona for several weeks or months, looping hundreds of thousands of kilometers into space. Some prominences may give rise to coronal mass ejections. Exact mechanism of prominence generation is an ongoing target of scientific research. A typical prominence extends over many thousands of kilometers; the largest on record was estimated at over 800,000 km (500,000 mi) long, roughly of solar radius. Photos taken back in 2022 using my Ha Solar filter and telescope.

Our star

Our beautiful star keeps our planet alive; without it there would be no life. On this warm sunny day the viewing was very nice, with a calm atmosphere and no major turbulence. The view through the eyepiece was fantastic! There was a lot of activity on the solar surface with active areas around sunspots and larger filaments. On the edge of the sun there were fantastic prominences; they were significantly larger than our own planet.

Half-cloudy in the morning and I took the opportunity to look at the sun between the clouds. Quite turbulent atmosphere and a bit poor vision, but tried to photograph the entire solar disk with 5 images then stitched together in Photoshop. The first thing I noticed were all the filaments on the sun and a couple of nice prominences (now it's the same thing but from different angles).

A filament on the sun is a large, winding cloud of hot gas (plasma) that is held above the sun's surface by strong magnetic fields. Since the gas is slightly cooler than the surrounding sun's surface, they look like dark, thread-like structures when you photograph the sun straight ahead.

If the same phenomenon is seen from the side, at the edge of the sun, it is instead called a prominence and looks like a bright, reddish arc that extends into space.

You can see this at the bottom left of the sun where a filament disappears over the edge and a prominence becomes visible.

Otherwise, an active sun with areas of sunspots and a chance for solar storms.

Inverted version

The Sun 2026-05-14

Active regions on the Sun are temporary areas of intense, complex magnetic fields, often thousands of times stronger than the Sun's average magnetic field. They appear as dark sunspots in the photosphere and are the primary source of solar flares, coronal loops, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs)

Current Solar Activity (As of May 2026)As of May 14, 2026, multiple numbered active regions have been observed, including AR4436 and AR4438.Recent activity includes a strong M5.79 flare from region 4436 and associated radio blackouts.

Photos taken at Carpe Noctem Observatory.

Active areas at the sun

Active areas on the Sun are regions with extremely strong magnetic fields, up to 1,000 times stronger than the Sun's average magnetic field. It is from these areas that solar storms, solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) most often emanate.

Sunspots: Dark, cooler areas in the photosphere where the magnetic field is extra concentrated. The number of sunspots follows a cycle of about 11 years. Plagues (bright areas): Bright, hot regions in the chromosphere surrounding sunspots. Solar flares: Sudden and intense energy discharges that send out radiation. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs): Huge clouds of plasma and magnetic fields that are thrown out from the Sun.

The picture shows AR4425 & 4428, taken through my telescope today.

AR4425

AR4425 (also known as 14425) is an active sunspot region currently located on the Earth-facing side of the Sun in late April and early May 2026. Here is the latest status of the region: Magnetic classification: It has recently been downgraded to a beta (β) configuration after losing its more complex "delta" structure, meaning its potential for powerful solar storms has decreased somewhat.

In recent days, AR4425 has been one of the more prominent regions, contributing to several C-class flares as well as occasional M-class (moderate) flares, including an M2.2 on April 26.

The region is currently moving across the northwestern quadrant of the Sun's disk. Although it has shown signs of decreasing complexity, it is still closely monitored by space weather services such as NOAA as it moves toward the edge of the Sun.

Photo taken through my back yard telescope 2026-05-01