Solar Eruption on 08-01-2010 Viewed by SDO (1 of 2) (IMAGE)

Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

Solar Eruption on 08-01-2010 Viewed by SDO (1 of 2)

Caption

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory snapped this X-ray photo of the Sun early in the morning of Sunday, August 1. The dark arc near the top right edge of the image is a filament of plasma blasting off the surface -- part of the coronal mass ejection. The bright region is an unassociated solar flare. When particles from the eruption reach Earth on the evening of August 3/4, they may trigger a brilliant auroral display known as the Northern Lights.

Credit

NASA

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