Download 1 - Humble ISD

Name__________________________________________Date______Period______
Secrets of the Sun
1. How far away is the sun from earth?
2. What color do astronomers classify our sun?
3. Approximately how many earths can fit into the sun?
4. What did early astronomers believe was the fuel that powered the sun? What was
the significant flaw with their belief?
5. What do astronomers call the particles that transfer light and heat within the
radiative zone of the sun’s interior?
6. What is meant by the term random walk when describing the transfer of energy
within the sun’s interior?
7. How long does it take for light generated by the sun to reach Earth?
8. What evidence is there that the sun possibly formed out of a supernova explosion?
9. What term is used to describe the unique rotation of the sun?
10. Why do sunspots specifically appear as dark blemishes on the surface of the sun?
11. What highly energized feature forms between two sunspots?
12. What government organization monitors solar activity?
13. What naturally occurring phenomenon protects the earth from the extreme blasts
of energy emitted by coronal mass ejections?
14. How long did it take for the energy emitted in the 1859 solar storm to reach earth?
15. How long is a sunspot cycle if you include the reversal of the sun’s magnetic
field?
16. Briefly explain what astronomers believe causes the particles within the corona to
heat up?