Chapter 1 - The Sun Flashcards
What are the layers of the sun in order?
- Chromosphere
- Photosphere
- Convection zone
- Radiative zone
- Inner core
What is the temperature of the inner core of the sun?
15 million degrees Celsius
How long does it take of light to travel from the core to the photosphere?
30,000 years
How long is a sun’s day compared to the day on the earth?
27 earth days
What is the mass of the sun compared to that of the earth?
333,333 x earth’s mass
What is the volume of the sun compared to that of the earth?
1.3 million x earth’s volume
What is the gravity of the sun compared to that of the earth?
28 times earth
What is the surface temperature of the sun?
Around 5500° Kelvin
What is the mean density of the sun?
1.4g / cm^3
What percentage of the Suns atmosphere is hydrogen and helium?
Hydrogen 73%
Helium 25%
Why did astronomers believe the sun was made of iron?
Each element has its own unique colour or wavelength of light when heated. The readings from the sun detected high amounts of iron. This is because light is absorbed by the valence electrons of an atom. Iron has 26 electrons, and therefore will still have enough left to emit it’s unique wavelength of light. While hydrogen only has one electron and therefore almost always loses it’s electron due to photons.
How much (percentage) of the solar systems total mass does the sun account for?
99.8%
Why is the sun hot?
The suns mass accounts for its heat, directly. It stays hot because nuclear fussion results in an emition of photons who carry light. The photons light energy is converted to heat in the radiative zone, thus heating the sun.
How long does it take an electron neutrino to travel from the suns core to the photosphere?
2 seconds
Is the sun magnetic?
Yes
