Labels:text | screenshot OCR: PROMINENCES AND FLARES VIOLENT SOLAR ACTIVITY often occurs near sunspots. Flares are "flashes" of energy that LOOPED PROMINENCE Magnetic field lines (below) join may last for several hours; they occur when two sunspots to lift a loop of gas a massive buildup of magnetic energy is above the Sun's surface. In 1973, suddenly released. Prominences are eruptions one prominence (far left) of flaming gas that may shoot hundreds of spanned 588,000 km (365,000 miles) thousands of kilometers into space. across the Sun's Looped prominences may remain surface. suspended by the solar magnetic field for weeks at a time. Gas loop Field lines Sunspot Prominence Flare
