From SOHO, this photo shows a collage of prominences, which are huge clouds of relatively cool dense plasma suspended in the Sun's hot, thin corona. At times, they can erupt, escaping the Sun's atmosphere. The hottest areas appear almost white, while the darker red areas indicate cooler temperatures. Going clockwise from the upper left, the images are from: 15 May 2001; 28 March 2000; 18 January 2000, and 2 February 2001.

Credits - NASA