schizo posters and /x/ types post this image all the damn time

I actually want to know what's really happening here? It's just some standard phenomena right? I assume the sun does something like this all the time, if the image is even real. It appears like it could be real.

I was thinking maybe a ferrous asteroid got close to the sun and there was some type of discharge interaction that made this look way crazier than it was.

But that's just misinformed explanation seeking. What's the real reason behind this imagery?