A prominence on the western edge of the sun is escaping into space. A prominence is a huge, arc-shaped cloud of hot gas and plasma held in place by the sun's strong magnetic field. If the magnetic field becomes unstable, the entire structure can rupture and be hurled into space at a speed of several million kilometers per hour. The image was taken on May 22, 2026 from the Carpe Noctem Observatory in Sweden. 

The Sun 24th of may 2026

A clear morning, but a very turbulent atmosphere and poor visibility. But I still took a chance on taking some pictures. It turned out 4 exposures with 200 stacked sequences per image, then stitched together in Photoshop.

Solar activity on May 24, 2026 is at an elevated and very active level, which is expected as we are close to the expected maximum period of solar cycle 25. Main measurements and events. During the last 24 hours, mainly C-class eruptions have been recorded, including two C3 eruptions early in the morning. The total number of observed sunspots remains high, indicating a continued high potential for further eruptions (such as M or X-class) in the next 24 hours. The last geomagnetic storm noted was at level G2 (moderate storm) on May 16, and currently there are relatively calm geomagnetic conditions.

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.