Erupting Prominence:

[American Patriot]

Space Weather News for May 12, 2008
http://spaceweather.com

ERUPTING PROMINENCE: Today, astronomers are monitoring an unusually active prominence on the sun's eastern limb. Even veteran observers are impressed, using words like "amazing" and "jaw-dropping" to describe the activity they have seen.

One onlooker described the fountain-like eruptions as "volcanic in appearance." This beautiful activity may herald the approach of a new sunspot--or it may be just a temporary upheaval, here today and gone tomorrow. What happens next?

Check http://spaceweather.com for images and updates.

[Luke]

I would think that type of event would jack up ham signals in a few days from now.
Also this is the first time this year I have seem the word prominence used in a sentence.

[American Patriot]

There has been a distinct LACK of sunspots. We should be already into the next cycle and it should be increasing the number of sunspots and disturbances on the sun, but it's been quiet.

Some folks in physics are predicting a cooling effect because the sun is quiet.