16: The Sun - A Nuclear Powerhouse

Question 1

process by which heat is directly transmitted through a substance when there is a difference of temperature between adjoining regions caused by atomic or molecular collisions

Answer 1

conduction

Question 2

movement caused within a gas or liquid by the tendency of hotter, and therefore less dense material, to rise and colder, denser material to sink under the influence of gravity, which consequently results in transfer of heat

Answer 2

convection

Question 3

breaking up of heavier atomic nuclei into lighter ones

Answer 3

fission

Question 4

building up of heavier atomic nuclei from lighter ones

Answer 4

fusion

Question 5

study of pulsations or oscillations of the Sun in order to determine the characteristics of the solar interior

Answer 5

helioseismology

Question 6

balance between the weights of various layers, as in a star or Earth’s atmosphere, and the pressures that support them

Answer 6

hydrostatic equilibrium

Question 7

fundamental particle that has no charge and a mass that is tiny relative to an electron; it rarely interacts with ordinary matter and comes in three different types

Answer 7

neutrino

Question 8

particle with the same mass as an electron, but positively charged

Answer 8

positron

Question 9

series of thermonuclear reactions by which nuclei of hydrogen are built up into nuclei of helium

Answer 9

proton-proton chain

Question 10

emission of energy as electromagnetic waves or photons also the transmitted energy itself

Answer 10

radiation

Question 11

chemical term for the burning of wood, coal, gasoline, or other fuel, producing chemical energy

Answer 11

oxidation

Question 12

unit of power (energy used or given off per unit time) - describes rate at which energy is being used in joules per second (J/s)

Answer 12

watt (W)

Question 13

corresponding, oppositely charged particle for each kind of particle - annihilates original when they come into contact, creating energy

Answer 13

antiparticle (antimatter)

Question 14

energy released when particles come together under the strong nuclear force and unite to form an atomic nucleus - some of the original sum of mass is lost

Answer 14

binding energy

Question 15

isotope of hydrogen containing one proton and one neutron

Answer 15

deuterium

Question 16

when all the forces within a star are balanced - it is neither expanding nor contracting

Answer 16

equilibrium

Question 17

process of neutrinos changing to a different type during their journey from the center of the Sun through space to Earth

Answer 17

neutrino oscillation