astro 1-20
How many years of fuel do we believe that the sun still has?
About 5.5 billion years
Why would it be incorrect to say that Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were discovered?
Any human that has ever lived could look up into the sky and see them.
What two elements will our Sun create that it will not be able to use for fuel?
Carbon and Oxygen
What elements are formed in the Suns core when it is using helium for fuel?
Carbon and oxygen
What makes up most of the space in an atom?
Empty space
What force is trying to crush the sun?
Gravity
What element will our sun use for fuel when it runs out of hydrogen?
Helium
What two things are required for hydrogen to fuse into helium?
High pressure and high temperature
What are the two most abundant elements in our Sun and in the Universe?
Hydrogen and Helium
More than 98% of all atoms in our solar system are comprised of these two elements.
Hydrogen and helium
What happens if a gas can exceed the escape velocity of a planet?
It flies out into space and is lost to the planets atmosphere.
What do we call the visible surface of the Sun?
Photosphere
What causes sunspots?
Strong magnetic fields on the Sun
Where is the hottest point inside the sun? How do we know this?
The Core, needs to be at least 20 million degrees for fusion to occur.
What is the brightest star we can see in our sky?
The Sun is millions of times brighter than any other star because it is so close to us.
How does the diameter of the sun compare with that of the Earth?
The Sun's diameter is 109X bigger
What is the Solar Cycle?
The sun cycling between no sunspots (solar minimum) and then lots of sunspots (solar maximum) and then back again.
How does the energy output of the sun compare with the human energy consumption here on Earth?
The sun puts out more energy in one second than we could use in 80,000 years.
Why are the Jovian planets so large?
They are made up of the much more abundant elements hydrogen and helium.
Compare the diameter of the sun and Earth to the volume of the sun and Earth. Why are the differences in volume so much greater than the diameters?
While the Suns diameter is 109 times greater its volume is 109^3 or 1.3 million times greater.