AST 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Solar Core, Radiation Zone, Solar Wind

• School: Tunxis Community College
• Department: Astronomy
• Course: AST 111
• Professor: Reynolds

Document Summary

Using einstein"s theory e=mc^2, we know now that the sun shines by converting mass into energy through nuclear fusion. Sun is in balance: internal gas pressure and the inward pull of gravity. Gravitational (hydrostatic) equilibrium: balance between the outward push of. Energy balance: balance between the rate at which fusion releases energy in the. Sun"s core and the rate at which the sun"s surface radiates this energy into space. Sun is made of plasma: a gas in which atoms are ionized because of their high temperature; sun is composed of hydrogen and helium. Sunspots: dark splotches on the sun"s surface that are cooler regions, caused by magnetic fields. Solar wind: the stream of charged particles continually blown outward in all directions from the sun. Corona: outermost layer of the sun"s atmosphere, very hot but not very dense, Chromosphere: the middle layer of the solar atmosphere, the region that radiates. Photosphere: the visible surface of the sun.