A distinctive type of ascending prominence - 'fountain'

Cinematographic observations of solar prominences made at Mauna Loa during the past couple of years suggest that there is a well-defined sub-class of ascending prominences characterized by closed-system transference of chromospheric material along an arch or loop (up one leg and down the other); meanwhile the entire prominence envelope steadily rises upward and expands through the corona. These prominences are denoted as 'fountains'. Several examples are described. Fountains appear to be well contained by coronal magnetic fields. Their total kinetic energy is in the order of 1030 erg but dissipation is typically quite slow (over time periods like 100 min) so that the correlative disturbances (radio bursts, coronal transients, chromospheric brightenings, etc.) are generally unspectacular or non-existent. (Auth.)