The Sun’s Interior Remember that the sun DOES NOT have a solid surface. The sun is made ENTIRELY of gas However, the sun has an INTERIOR and an ATMOSPHERE

3 Parts of the Sun’s Interior 1) The CORE 2) The RADIATIVE ZONE 3) The CONVECTIVE ZONE

The Layers of the Sun’s INTERIOR

The Core The Core: The central region of the sun that produces an enormous amount of energy.

How does the Core get its energy? This energy in the core is produced by NUCLEAR FUSION. What is NUCLEAR FUSION?

NUCLEAR FUSION NUCLEAR FUSION: the creation of the sun’s energy inside the Sun’s core. This only occurs under conditions of extremely high temperature and pressure. occurs when hydrogen joins together to form helium

The Radiative Zone The Radiative Zone: the region of very tightly packed gas where energy moves out from the core.

Radiation Zone Because the radiation zone is so dense, energy can take more than 100,000 years to move through it.

The Convective Zone The Convective Zone: the outermost layer of the sun’s interior. Hot gases rise from the bottom of the convection zone and gradually cool as they approach the top. Cooler gases sink, forming loops of gas that move energy toward the sun’s surface.

The Convective Zone

Think about your own house. Is the temperature different in your attic than your basement?

Warmest Air = in your attic Cooler Air = in your basement

Remember that cold air is denser, or heavier, and warm air is lighter. Because of this, cooler air sinks, and warm air rises.

3 Layers of the Sun’s Interior

Easy to remember list Core = at the center and the HOTTEST part of the sun Radiative Zone = the hardest for energy to pass through –can take years because it is so dense Convective Zone = the highest part of the Sun’s interior, where cool air sinks and warm air rises in loops

Now that we know all of the layers INSIDE the sun, what about the outer layers?

Does the Sun have an atmosphere?

YES! There are 3 parts of the Sun’s Atmosphere: 1) The Photosphere: 2) The Chromosphere: 3) The Corona:

The Photosphere The Greek word “Photo” means what?

The Photosphere “Photo” means “Light” Photosphere: the inner layer of the sun’s atmosphere that gives off visible light. The gases of the photosphere are thick enough to be visible. When you look at an image of the sun, you are looking at the photosphere. Photosphere: considered to be the sun’s surface layer

The Photosphere

The Chromosphere What does the Greek word “Chroma” mean?

The Chromosphere “Chroma” means “Color” Chromosphere: the middle layer of the sun’s atmosphere Has a reddish glow During a solar eclipse, the moon blocks light from the photosphere, so this is the one time that you can see the chromosphere, which gives off a reddish glow

Chromosphere

The Corona Corona: the outer layer of the Sun’s atmosphere which looks like a white halo around the sun “Corona” in Latin means CROWN The Corona is by far the largest part of the Sun’s atmosphere, as it extends into space for millions of kilometers

The Corona “Corona” in Latin means CROWN The Corona is by far the largest part of the Sun’s atmosphere, as it extends into space for millions of kilometers

The Corona

The Sun’s Layers

Sun’s Layers