The Sun

Nur Islami
INTRODUCTION
Visible Image of the Sun
The Sun The Sun
Our sole source
of light and heat in
the solar system the solar system
A very common
star: a glowing ball of
gas held together by its
own gravity and powered
by nuclear fusion at its
center.
Pressure (from heat
caused by nuclear
reactions) balances the
gravitational pull
toward the Suns center.
Called Hydrostatic
Equilibrium.
This balance leads to a This balance leads to a
spherical ball of gas,
called the Sun.
What would happen if
the nuclear reactions
(burning) stopped?
SOLAR PROPERTIES
Radius = 696,000 km
(100 times Earth)
Mass = 2 x 10
30
kg
(300,000 times Earth)
Av. Density = 1410 kg/m
3
Rotation Period =
Solar Properties Solar Properties
Rotation Period =
24.9 days (equator)
29.8 days (poles)
Surface temp = 5780 K
Element
Hydrogen 70.9%
Helium 27.4%
etc
Luminosity of the Sun
= L
SUN
(Total light energy
emitted per second)
~ 4 x 10
26
W
100 billion one-
megaton nuclear bombs
every second!
Solar constant:
L
SUN
/ 4R
2
(energy/second/area
at the radius of
Earths orbit)
The Solar Interior
Helioseismology
In the 1960s, it was
discovered that the
surface of the Sun
vibrates like a bell
Internal pressure
How do we know the interior How do we know the interior
structure of the Sun? structure of the Sun?
Internal pressure
waves reflect off the
photosphere
Analysis of the
surface patterns of
these waves tell us
about the inside of the
Sun
The Standard Solar Model
Energy Transport within the Sun
Extremely hot core - ionized gas
Temperature falls further from core - more and more non-ionized atoms
capture the photons - gas becomes opaque to light in the convection zone
The low density in the photosphere makes it transparent to light - radiation
takes over again
Convection
Convection takes over when
the gas is too opaque for
radiative energy transport.
Hot gas is less dense and
rises (or floats, like a hot air
balloon or a beach ball in a balloon or a beach ball in a
pool).
Cool gas is more dense and
sinks
Solar Granulation
Evidence for Convection
Solar Granules are the tops of convection cells.
Bright regions are where hot material is upwelling
(1000 km across).
Dark regions are where cooler material is sinking.
Material rises/sinks @ ~1 km/sec (2200 mph; Doppler).
THE SUN ATMOSPHERE
The solar spectrum has
thousands of absorption
lines
More than 67 different
elements are present!
Hydrogen is the most
The Solar Atmosphere
Hydrogen is the most
abundant element followed
by Helium (1
st
discovered
in the Sun!)
Spectral lines only tell us about the part of the Sun that forms
them (photosphere and chromosphere) but these elements are
also thought to be representative of the entire Sun.
Main Regions of the Sun
Visible
surface
The Photosphere
The visible surface of the sun
It is not solid, thin layer of gas, less than 500
km deep.
The pothosphere is less than 1/3000 as dense The pothosphere is less than 1/3000 as dense
as the air in the earth.
Below photosphere, the gas is denser and
hotter
The granulation is appear in the photosphere
Granules
Convection from inside the sun causes the
photosphere to be subdivided into 1000-
2000km cells.
Energy rises to the surface as gas wells up in the cores of
the granules, and cool gas sinks around their edges.
Chromosphere
Chromosphere (seen during full Solar eclipse)
Chromosphere emits very little light because it is of low density
Reddish hue due to 32 (656.3 nm) line emission from Hydrogen
The chromospheres density ranges from
10000-100 billion times less than the air on
the earth
Chromospheric Spicules:
warm jets of matter
shooting out at ~100 km/s
Spicules are thought to the
result of magnetic
disturbances
H light
Transition Zone and Corona
Transition Zone
& Corona
We see emission
lines from highly
ionized elements
Very low density,
T ~ 10
6
K
Why does the Temperature rise further from the hot light source?
ionized elements
(Fe
+5
Fe
+13
) which
indicates that the
temperature here is
very HOT
magnetic activity -spicules and other more energetic
phenomena (more about this later)
Corona (seen during full Solar eclipse)
Hot coronal gas
escapes the Sun
Solar wind
Solar Wind
Solar Wind
Coronal gas has enough heat (kinetic) energy to escape the
Suns gravity.
The Sun is evaporating via this wind.
Solar wind travels at ~500 km/s, reaching Earth in ~3 days
The Sun loses about 1 million tons of matter each second!
However, over the Suns lifetime, it has lost only ~0.1% of
its total mass. its total mass.
Hot coronal gas (~1,000,000 K) emits mostly in X-rays.
Coronal holes
are sources of
the solar wind
(lower density
regions)
Coronal holes
are related to the
Suns magnetic
field
The Active Sun
UV light
Most of theSolar luminosity is continuous photosphere emission.
But, there is an irregular component
(contributing little to the Suns total luminosity).
SUNSPOT
Sunspots
Granulation around sunspot
Sunspots Sunspots
Typically about 10000 km
across
At any time, the sun may
have hundreds or none
Dark color because they Dark color because they
are cooler than photospheric
gas (4500K in darkest parts)
Each spot can last from a few days to a few months
Galileo observed these spots and realized the sun is rotating
differentially (faster at the poles, slower at the equator)
Sunspots &
Magnetic Fields
The magnetic field in a sunspot The magnetic field in a sunspot
is 1000x greater than the
surrounding area
Sunspots are almost always in
pairs at the same latitude with
each member having opposite
polarity
All sunspots in the same
hemisphere have the same
magnetic configuration
The Suns differential rotation distorts the magnetic field lines
The twisted and tangled field lines occasionally get kinked, causing the field
strength to increase
Sunspot Cycle
Solar maximum is
reached every ~11 years
Solar Cycle is 22 years long direction of magnetic field
polarity flips every 11 years (back to original orientation every 22 years)
Charged particles (mostly
protons and electrons) are
accelerated along magnetic field
lines above sunspots.
This type of activity, not light
energy, heats the corona.
Heating of the Corona
energy, heats the corona.
SOLAR PROMINENCES
Charged particles follow magnetic fields between sunspots:
Solar Prominences
Sunspots are cool,
but the gas above
them is hot!
Earth
Solar Prominence
Cloudlike structure, loop shape
Large amount of gases
Looks like a huge flame
coming out of the sun
Typical size is 100,000 km
May persist for days or weeks
Very large solar prominence (1/2 million km across base,
i.e. 39 Earth diameters) taken from Skylab in UV light.
Solar Flares much more violent magnetic instabilities
5 hours
Particles in the flare are so energetic, the magnetic field cannot bring them
back to the Sun they escape Suns gravity
SOLAR FLARE
Solar Flares
A solar flare is a sudden
brightening observed over the
Sun's surface, which is
interpreted as a large energy
release of up to 6 10
25
joules
of energy (about of energy (about
160,000,000,000 megatons of
TNT)
They are mainly followed by a
colossal coronal mass ejection.
The flare ejects clouds of
electrons, ions, and atoms
through the corona of the sun
into space.
These clouds typically reach
Earth a day or two after the
event.
Solar flares affect all layers of the solar atmosphere
(photosphere, chromosphere, and corona)
When the plasma medium is heated to tens of millions
of kelvins the electrons, protons, and heavier ions are
accelerated to near the speed of light. accelerated to near the speed of light.
Flares occur in active regions around sunspots, where
intense magnetic fields penetrate the photosphere to
link the corona to the solar interior.
Flares are powered by the sudden (timescales of
minutes to tens of minutes) release of magnetic energy
stored in the corona.
Solar flares strongly influence the local space weather
in the vicinity of the Earth.
They can produce streams of highly energetic particles
in the solar wind, known as a solar proton event, or
"coronal mass ejection" (CME).
These particles can impact the Earth's magnetosphere, These particles can impact the Earth's magnetosphere,
and present radiation hazards to spacecraft and
astronauts.
Massive solar flares are sometimes associated with
CMEs which can trigger geomagnetic storms that have
been known to knock out electric power for extended
periods of time.
SOLAR WIND
The solar wind is a stream of charged particles
released from the upper atmosphere of the Sun.
It mostly consists of electrons and protons with
energies usually between 1.5 and 10 keV.
The stream of particles varies in density, The stream of particles varies in density,
temperature, and speed over time and over solar
longitude.
These particles can escape the Sun's gravity
because of their high kinetic energy and the high
temperature of the corona.
The solar wind flows outward supersonically
to great distances.
Other related phenomena include
geomagnetic storms that can knock out power geomagnetic storms that can knock out power
grids on Earth, the aurora (northern and
southern lights), and the plasma tails of
comets that always point away from the Sun.
As the solar wind
approaches a planet
that has a well-
developed magnetic
field (such as Earth,
Jupiter and Saturn), the
particles are deflected
by the Lorentz force.
This region, known as This region, known as
the magnetosphere,
causes the particles to
travel around the planet
rather than bombarding
the atmosphere or
surface.
The magnetosphere is roughly shaped like a
hemisphere on the side facing the Sun, then is
drawn out in a long wake on the opposite
side.
The boundary of this region is called the
magnetopause, and some of the particles are
able to penetrate the magnetosphere through
this region by partial reconnection of the
magnetic field lines.
Solar Wind (conclusion)
Blows charged particles and magnetic fields away from the Sun
Charged particles captured by Earths magnetic field
Create Auroras or Northern and Southern Lights
Image at http://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/the_key.shtml
SUNS INFLUENCE ON THE EARTH
Influences on Earth
Gravity
Light (Radiation) Light (Radiation)
Solar Wind (already discussed)
Gravity
Orbits
The Suns powerful gravity keeps the
planets in orbit
Radiation
Our Sun (and all active stars) emits
radiation
Radio, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, x-ray and even some gamma
rays
Most of the sunlight is yellow-green visible light or close to it
The Sun at X-ray wavelengths
Suns Radiation at Earth
The Earths atmosphere filters out some
frequencies
Ozone layer protects us from some ultra-violet, and most x-rays
and gamma rays
Water and oxygen absorb some radio waves
Water vapor, carbon dioxide, and ozone absorbs some infrared
Electromagnetic spectrum
http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_classroom/ir_tutorial/what_is_ir.html
.
Sun as a Source of Energy
Light from the Sun is absorbed by the Earth, unevenly
to:
drive wind bands which drive surface currents
drive deep ocean currents
drive water cycle
drive weather
Long ago????
NASA image at http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view_rec.php?id=107
Credit: NASA GSFC Water and Energy Cycle
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/jpl/news/grace-20061212.html
Sun as a Source of Energy
Plants need light for photosynthesis
Without its heat, the only inhabitable areas on
Earth would be near volcanic vents
Task 2 (group)
Make one paper (3-5 pages) that discuss
about: Nuclear fusion in the sun and its
implication.
Submit the paper at next lecture Submit the paper at next lecture
One group (chosen randomly) will present it
within 20 minutes (15 minutes for
presentation + 5 minutes Q&A)
Task 3 (group)
Make one paper (3-5 pages) that discuss
about: The origin of the solar system.
No need to print (just waste the paper and
ink) ink)
Submit it via this email (nris74@yahoo.com)
The presenter is group: