CHAPTER 9: STAR AND GALAXIES

9.1 Analysing the Sun

1. The characteristics of the Sun

- nearest star to the Earth
- the center of the Solar System

Distance from the Earth About 149 680 000 km

Temperature Surface temperature: approximately 5500 degrees Celsius
Composition 76% of hydrogen
22% of helium
2% of iron, nickel, silicon and carbon
Radius 109 times that of the Earth
Density 0.27 times that of the Earth
Mass 333 420 times mass of the Earth

2. Three Structures of the Sun

a) Corona
- the outermost layer of the Sun
- made up of thin layer of gas and appear as bluish white layer
- its temperature is around 2 000 000 degrees Celsius

b) Chromosphere
- 9600 km thick
- its temperature is around 150 000 degrees Celsius

c) Photosphere
- it is around 400 km thick
- its temperature is around 6000 degrees Celsius
- the surface of the Sun as seen from the Earth

3. Three phenomena occurring on the surface of the Sun

a) Sunspots
- appear as dark patches because they are cooler than other parts of the surface.
- Do not last for few weeks
- Generally appear in groups. They are huge but not permanent

b) Prominences
- the masses of glowing gas also known as ‘giant flames’.
- Can extend to many thousands of kilometres from the surface
- Some surface gases mainly escape hydrogen and helium to outer space and
carry a stream of energetic, electrically charged partical.

c) Solar flares
- the explosive event on the solar surface.
- Give out a lot of energy although they last from several minutes to several
hours only.
4. Three effects of the phenomena

- the sunspots are magnetically active spots. They are caused by magnetic
disturbance deep inside the Sun
- it is believed a large amounts of sunspots can cause disturbing weather
conditions on the Earth
- examples, they can cause extreme drought.

- the particles from prominences can cause wind known as solar wind.
- Solar wind can affect satellite, radio, television, telegraph and telephone
communications.
- Prominences can also cause an aurora which is a phenomenon in which sky in
the polar regions appears colourful.

- Solar flares often gives off ultraviolet light and X-rays that heat up the Earth’s
upper atmosphere.
- This can change the orbits of satellite and shorten their lifetimes.

5. How energy is generated by the Sun

The Sun’s energy comes from deep within its core. Here a process called
nuclear fusion takes place.

At the Sun’s core, hydrogen atoms bang into each other constantly and fuse
into atoms of helium and forming huge amounts of energy.

The energy generated is carried to the Sun’s surface where it is released as

heat and light.

* core - the centre of the Sun.

- its temperature is 15 000 000 degrees celsius