Sun

Question 1

Hat is the sun mainly made of

Answer 1

Hydrogen, helium, oxygen

Question 2

Who showed that the sun and other stars have similar compositions and are made of mostly hydrogen and helium

Answer 2

Cecilia Payne gaposhkin

Question 3

What is the photosphere

Answer 3

The visible surface of the sun

Question 4

Which layer of the sun does it become opaque (we can no longer see through it)

Answer 4

Photosphere

Question 5

Photons from the interior of the sun can finally ____ after passing the photosphere

Answer 5

Stream away freely

Question 6

The photosphere is _____

Answer 6

Granulated

Question 7

What are granuales

Answer 7

Small cells of rising hot gas and sinking cool gas, each the size of Texas and lives for 5-10 mins

Question 8

How are granules formed

Answer 8

Convection currents under the suns surface

Question 9

Chromosphere

Answer 9

A layer of hot gases that emits strong emission lines

Question 10

Transition region

Answer 10

Layer where the temp increases from 10,000 K to 1000000K

Question 11

Corona

Answer 11

Outermost layer, hottest layer

Question 12

What is solar wind

Answer 12

Stream of particles moving away from sun

Question 13

Where does solar wind originate

Answer 13

In quiet and cool regions of the corona called coronal holes

Question 14

What is coronal holes

Answer 14

Where magnetic field lines stretch far away and don’t trap particles

Question 15

What are auroras

Answer 15

Interaction between solar wind and earths magnetic field

Question 16

What are sunspots

Answer 16

Large, dark features seen on the surface of the sun caused by an increased magnetic activity

Question 17

How long do sunspots last

Answer 17

Few hours to a few months

Question 18

What is differential rotation

Answer 18

The equator rotates faster than the poles

Question 19

How often does the sunspot cycle occur

Answer 19

Every 11 years

Question 20

What is the solar cycle

Answer 20

22 year cycle in which magnetic field reverses direction twice

Question 21

What are plages

Answer 21

Bright clouds in the chromosphere around sunspots

Question 22

What are prominences

Answer 22

Relatively cool plasma features originating near sunspots that can either form stable loops or erupt farther into the corona

Question 23

When do solar flares occur

Answer 23

When opposite magnetic fields destroy each other and release energy

Question 24

What are solar flares and coronal mass ejections

Answer 24

Rapid eruptions releasing hydrogen bombs of energy

Question 25

What is space weather

Answer 25

The interactions between solar storms and our magnetic fields

Question 26

What can space weather cause

Answer 26

Auroras or electrical outages

Question 27

What is the main source of space weather

Answer 27

Coronal holes, solar flares and coronal mass ejections

Question 28

Why are sunspots dark

Answer 28

They are cooler then the rest of the photosphere

Question 29

Name the outer layers of the sun in order from innermost to outermost

Answer 29

Photosphere, chromosphere, transition period, corona

Question 30

In what is the chromosphere particularly bright

Answer 30

Emission lines

Question 31

What is the device used to block light of the sun in order to view its outer atmosphere layers

Answer 31

Chronograph