plage
astronomy
Also known as: bright flocculi, chromospheric facula
Quick Summary
In astronomy, a plage is a bright region on the Sun's surface, often associated with sunspots. These bright areas are caused by light emitted from clouds of calcium or hydrogen. Faculae, which are bright granular structures on the Sun, are always accompanied by a plage, though plages can exist independently of sunspots. Plages are visible in white light near the Sun's edge and become apparent across the entire disk when viewed in the chromosphere through spectroheliograms.12
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