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42 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
22-year solar cycle
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The semiregular interval between successive appearances of sunspots at the same latitude with the same magnetic polarity.
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Chromospheres
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a layer in the atmosphere of the Sun between the photosphere and the corona
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CNO cycle
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a series of nuclear reactions in which carbon is used as a catalyst to transform hydrogen into helium
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conduction
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the transfer of heat by directly passing energy from atom to atom
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convection
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the transfer of energy by moving currents of fluid or gas containing that energy.
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convective zone
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the region in a star where convection is the dominant means of energy transport
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corona
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the sun's outer atmosphere, which has a high temperature and a low density
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coronal hole
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a region in the sun's corona that is deficient in hot gases
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coronal mass ejection
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an event in which billions of tons of gas from the sun's corona is suddenly blasted into space at a high speed.
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differential rotation
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the rotation of a nonrigid object in which parts adjacent to each other at given times do not always stay close together.
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filament
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a portion of the sun's chromosphere that arches ito high altitudes
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granulation
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the rice grain-like structure found in the solar photosphere
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granule
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a convective cell in the solar photosphere
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helioseismology
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the study of the vibrations of the Sun as a whole
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hydrogen burning
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the thermonuclear conversion of hydrogen to helium
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hydrostatic equilibrium
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the balance between the weight of a layer in a star and the pressure that supports it
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limb darkening
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the phenomenon whereby the sun looks darker near its apparent edge, or limb, than near the center of its disk
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luminosity
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the rate at which electromagnetic radiation is emitted from a star of other object
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magnetic-dynamo model
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a theory that explains the solar cycle as a result of the sun's differential rotation acting on the sun's magnetic field
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magnetogram
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an artificial pic of the sun that shows regions of different magnetic polarity
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negatice hydrogen ion
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a hydrogen atom that has acquired a second electron
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neutrino
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a subatomic particle with no electric charge and little or no mass, yet one that is important in many nuclear reaction
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photosphere
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the region in the solar stmosphere from which most of the visible light excapes into space
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plage
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a bright region in the solar atmosphere as observed in the monochromatic light of a spectral line
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plasma
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a hot ionized gas
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positron
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an electron with a positice rather than negative elctric charge; the antiparticle of the electron
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prominence
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flamelike protrusions seen near the limb of the Sun and extending into the solar corona
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proton-proton chain
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a sequence of thermonuclear reactions by which hydrogen nuclei are build up into helium nuclei
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radiative diffusion
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the random migration of phrotons from a star's center toward its surface
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solar neutrino
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a neutrino emitted from the core of the sun
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solar neutrino problem
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the discrepancey between the predicted and observed numbers of solar neutrinos
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solar wind
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an outward slow of particles (mostly electrons and protons)from the sun
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spicule
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a narrow jet of rising gas in the solar chromosphere
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sunspot
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a temporary cool region in the solar photosphere
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sunspot cycle
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the semiregular 11-year poeriod with which the number of sunspots fluctuates
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sunspot max/ min
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that time during the sunspot cycle when the number of sunspots is highest/ lowest
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supergranule
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a large convective feature of the solar atmisphere, ususally outlined by spicules
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thermal equilibrium
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a balance between the input and outlow of heat in a system
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thermonuclear fusion
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the combining of nuclei under condistions of high temperature that releases substantial energy
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zeeman effect
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a splitting or broadening of spectral lines due to a magnetic field.
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radiative zone
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a region within a star where radiative diffusion is the dominant mode of energy transport
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solar flare
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a sudden, temporary outburst of light from an extended region of the solar surface.
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