Unit 4

Question 1

convection zone

Answer 1

outermost layer of the sun’s interior

Question 2

corona

Answer 2

outermost layer of the sun’s atmosphere that looks like a halo during an eclipse

Question 3

core

Answer 3

center of the sun where nuclear fusion occurs

Question 4

chromosphere

Answer 4

gaseous layer of the sun’s atmosphere (extending from the photosphere to the corona) that is visible during a total eclipse of the sun

Question 5

radiation zone

Answer 5

layer of the sun’s interior where energy is transferred mainly by electromagnetic radiation

Question 6

Angstrom

Answer 6

10−10 meters or 0.1 nanometers and used to measure the wavelength of light being emitted

Question 7

solar prominence

Answer 7

plasma flows along a loop from sunspot to sunspot

Question 8

solar flare

Answer 8

are interruptions in the Sun’s magnetic energy. If a loop in the magnetic field snaps and breaks, it creates a solar flare. These are violent explosions that release huge amounts of energy from the surface of the sun

Question 9

sunspot

Answer 9

cooler and darker areas. These are located where the Sun’s magnetic field break through the surface and disrupt the smooth transfer of heat from the lower layer

Question 10

photosphere

Answer 10

layer of the sun’s atmosphere that gives off visible light

Question 11

aurora

Answer 11

occur when the magnetosphere is disturbed by solar wind from the sun

Question 12

lunar highlands

Answer 12

brighter/lighter areas on the moon, made of oldest crust

Question 13

impact basins

Answer 13

circular areas on the moon where impacts occurred

Question 14

crater

Answer 14

bowl-shaped cavity in the ground or on the surface of a planet or the moon caused by the impact of a meteorite

Question 15

maria

Answer 15

basaltic flood plains on the moon’s surface due to lava flow

Question 16

rilles

Answer 16

cracks in the crust of the moon

Question 17

eclipse

Answer 17

obscuring of light from one celestial body when another body passes between it and the observer

Question 18

solar eclipse

Answer 18

the moon blocks the sun

Question 19

new moon

Answer 19

a phase of the moon when there is no visible illuminated surface

Question 20

crescent moon

Answer 20

a phase of the moon when less than half the visible portion is illuminated

Question 21

full moon

Answer 21

a phase of the moon when the entire visible portion is illuminated

Question 22

gibbous moon

Answer 22

a phase of the moon when over half the visible portion is illuminated

Question 23

lunar eclipse

Answer 23

when the moon appears darkened because it passes into the shadow of the earth

Question 24

quarter moon

Answer 24

a phase of the moon when exactly half the visible surface is illuminated

Question 25

solar wind

Answer 25

a stream of charged particles produced by the corona

Question 26

penumbra

Answer 26

shadow cast by the earth or moon over an area experiencing a partial eclipse

Question 27

umbra

Answer 27

the fully shaded inner region of a shadow cast by an opaque object, especially the area on the earth or moon experiencing the total phase of an eclipse

Question 28

ecliptic

Answer 28

plane that contains Earth’s orbit around the Sun

Question 29

tides

Answer 29

the alternate rising and falling of the sea twice approximately every 23 hours

Question 30

spring tide

Answer 30

an above average tide that occurs when the moon is new or full

Question 31

neap tide

Answer 31

a less than average tide occurring at the first and third quarter of the moon’s phases