Layers of the Sun

By Avery Campbell

Inner to Outer Layers

Core

Radiation Zone
Convection Zone
Photosphere
Chromosphere
Corona

Core
The Suns core has a very high temperature that

is tightly packed, reaching more than 15 million

degrees Kelvin.
The core is know to be the source that contains
all the energy from the sun.
In the core, there are fusion processes called the
Proton-Proton Cycle and the CarbonNitrogen-Oxygen Cycle.

Radiation Zone
The Radiation Zone receives energy generated

by the cores nuclear fusion.

Between the innermost core and the outer
convective zone.
The core and radiative zone (inner parts) spin
differently than the convective zone (outer part).
The boundary of the rotations differing is called
the tachocline.

Convection Zone
After the radiation zone the energy produced from

the core has cooled down, needing a new

transport mechanism.
Once the hot material reaches the convection
zone it starts to cool down and sink to the bottom,
and then heats up to the top. This makes a rolling
motion just like a pot of boiling water.
It only takes about a week for the heat to carry to
the top of the convection zone.

Photosphere
Also known as the apparent surface of the sun.

The photosphere is the disk you see in the sky

when you look at the Sun through a filtered

telescope.
The temperature of the photosphere is only 5800
degrees Kelvin, but the gas is thin enough to
absorb and release energy.

Sunspots
A typical sunspot is about 3500 degrees Kelvin.

Sunspots can vary from a couple hours to several

months.
Views through a solar telescope the sunspots
come off pretty dark because they are generally
cooler than the gas that surrounds the.

Chromosphere
A layer of gas that is approx 2000 km thick.

The Chromosphere only lets certain red light

through the different wavelengths of the sun.

It contains spikes of gas called spicules that rise
through it.
Spicules only last for ten minutes, moving upward
at about 30km/sec.

Corona
The outermost layer is called the Corona.

Particles from the Corona reach far enough into

space that they reach the earths orbit.

The shape of the corona is mostly determined by
the magnetic field of the sun.
The Corona is very this so it can only be seen by
a coronograph telescope or during a solar
eclipse.