Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Sun To Earth
Sun To Earth
The Sun is one of about 200 billion stars in a galaxy we call Milky Way.
It resides on the outskirts, about 28,000 light years from the center.
Why Study the Sun?
• Understand how the Sun affects the Earth and the solar system
• Understand how stars work
• Understand more about the laws of nature
1
The Sun appears white
to us
but it
radiates in all
wavelengths
(visible and
nonvisible
“colors”)
Like the Earth, the Sun rotates. However, unlike the Earth,
the Sun has a complex rotation mechanism.
The Sun’s Variable Rotation
Solar Rotation Rates:
1
1) Polar regions = 36 days
2) 60 Degrees = 31 days 2
3) Equatorial Regions = 26 days
3
Sunspots denote
regions of strong
magnetic fields. They
appear dark because
they are relatively cooler
than the surface.
Sunspots and Magnetic Fields
Plasma emission
traces out magnetic
fields in the solar
corona
What happens below a sunspot?
The amount of
magnetic activity
on the Sun varies
in an 11 year cycle.
Jan 7, 2004
Solar Eruptions
Common during the
Sun’s active periods
Quiet
Sun
Active
Sun
The white circle in the images indicates
the size and position of the Sun.
A solar “wind” streams into
the solar system and shapes
Earth’s magnetosphere
The Earth’s magnetosphere is buffeted during a
solar storm
The Sun generates
Space Weather in our
solar system
Solar activity can have a dramatic impact on
communications, satellites, and astronauts.
Solar activity causes
colorful aurorae
Solar storm causes blackout in 1989
In 90 seconds, 6 million
people lost power for 9
hours.
Mars
Aurorae
on
Neptune,
Saturn,
and
Jupiter
The Ionosphere
Helpful Sites
sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov
sun.stanford.edu
www.solarstorms.org
solar.sec.noaa.gov
www.exploratorium.edu/spaceweather
www.spaceweathercenter.org
www.spaceweather.com