Question 1

What natural barrier tries to prevent two protons from combining?

Accepted Answer

A)  dark energy 
B)  antigravity 
C)  electromagnetic repulsion 
D)  the weak nuclear force 
E)  the strong nuclear force 
A)  dark energy 
B)  antigravity 
C)  electromagnetic repulsion 
D)  the weak nuclear force 
E)  the strong nuclear force

Question 2

Visible sunspots lie in the:

Accepted Answer

A)  chromosphere. 
B)  transition zone. 
C)  corona. 
D)  radiative zone. 
E)  granulation in the photosphere. 
A)  chromosphere. 
B)  transition zone. 
C)  corona. 
D)  radiative zone. 
E)  granulation in the photosphere.

Question 3

The percentage (by mass)of the Sun that is helium is about:

Accepted Answer

A)  91%. 
B)  71%. 
C)  27%. 
D)  9%. 
E)  less than 1%. 
A)  91%. 
B)  71%. 
C)  27%. 
D)  9%. 
E)  less than 1%.

Question 4

The Sun is a fairly normal star.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

Why couldn't you stand on the Sun's surface?

Accepted Answer

A)  The Sun has no surface at all...the photosphere is an illusion. 
B)  You could stand on the surface. 
C)  The Sun doesn't have a solid surface. 
D)  The Sun's surface is too highly magnetized for anything to survive there. 
E)  You could stand on it, if a sufficiently protective spacesuit could be designed. 
A)  The Sun has no surface at all...the photosphere is an illusion. 
B)  You could stand on the surface. 
C)  The Sun doesn't have a solid surface. 
D)  The Sun's surface is too highly magnetized for anything to survive there. 
E)  You could stand on it, if a sufficiently protective spacesuit could be designed.

Question 6

Hydrostatic equilibrium in our Sun is the balance between:

Accepted Answer

A)  convection and radiation. 
B)  convection and gravitation. 
C)  pressure and radiation. 
D)  radiation and gravitation. 
E)  gravitation and pressure. 
A)  convection and radiation. 
B)  convection and gravitation. 
C)  pressure and radiation. 
D)  radiation and gravitation. 
E)  gravitation and pressure.

Question 7

The temperature of the layer of gas that produces the visible light of the Sun is:

Accepted Answer

A)  3,500 K. 
B)  5,800 K. 
C)  12,300 K. 
D)  300,000 K. 
E)  15 million K. 
A)  3,500 K. 
B)  5,800 K. 
C)  12,300 K. 
D)  300,000 K. 
E)  15 million K.

Question 8

There appears to be a correlation between the 22-year solar cycle and:

Accepted Answer

A)  droughts in North America. 
B)  asteroid impacts on Earth. 
C)  change of which political party has the majority in the U.S. Congress. 
D)  the length of Mercury's day. 
E)  the length of Saturn's year. 
A)  droughts in North America. 
B)  asteroid impacts on Earth. 
C)  change of which political party has the majority in the U.S. Congress. 
D)  the length of Mercury's day. 
E)  the length of Saturn's year.

Question 9

Explain what is meant by the solar cycle.What role does magnetism play?

Accepted Answer

The solar cycle is the periodic reversal

Question 10

Loops of glowing hydrogen seen hanging over the solar limb during totality are:

Accepted Answer

A)  solar rainbows. 
B)  haloes. 
C)  prominences. 
D)  filaments. 
E)  flares. 
A)  solar rainbows. 
B)  haloes. 
C)  prominences. 
D)  filaments. 
E)  flares.

Question 11

What two energy transport mechanisms,in order from outside the core to the surface,are found in the Sun?

Accepted Answer

A)  convection, conduction 
B)  radiative diffusion, convection 
C)  conduction, radiative diffusion 
D)  radiative diffusion, conduction 
E)  conduction, convection 
A)  convection, conduction 
B)  radiative diffusion, convection 
C)  conduction, radiative diffusion 
D)  radiative diffusion, conduction 
E)  conduction, convection

Question 12

When the chromosphere can be seen during a solar eclipse,it appears:

Accepted Answer

A)  invisible. 
B)  violet. 
C)  blue. 
D)  yellow. 
E)  red. 
A)  invisible. 
B)  violet. 
C)  blue. 
D)  yellow. 
E)  red.

Question 13

The solar winds blow outward from:

Accepted Answer

A)  sunspots. 
B)  flares. 
C)  the entire photosphere. 
D)  coronal holes. 
E)  the Sun's poles only. 
A)  sunspots. 
B)  flares. 
C)  the entire photosphere. 
D)  coronal holes. 
E)  the Sun's poles only.

Question 14

The critical temperature the core must reach for a star to shine by fusion is:

Accepted Answer

A)  5,800 K. 
B)  11,000 K. 
C)  127,000 K. 
D)  10 million K. 
E)  100 million K. 
A)  5,800 K. 
B)  11,000 K. 
C)  127,000 K. 
D)  10 million K. 
E)  100 million K.

Question 15

What is the size of a typical granule or convection cell seen in the photosphere?

Accepted Answer

A)  10,000 km 
B)  1,000 km 
C)  100 km 
D)  10 km 
E)  1 km 
A)  10,000 km 
B)  1,000 km 
C)  100 km 
D)  10 km 
E)  1 km

Question 16

Sunspots are only about 2,000 K cooler than the much brighter photosphere.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

As with Uranus,the solar equator rotates slower than sunspots at higher latitudes.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 18

Auroras are most brilliant during periods of increased solar activity.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 19

The area in the Sun's atmosphere located above the chromosphere (1,500-10,000 km)where the temperature rises dramatically is called the:

Accepted Answer

A)  photosphere. 
B)  corona. 
C)  solar wind. 
D)  transition zone. 
E)  convection zone. 
A)  photosphere. 
B)  corona. 
C)  solar wind. 
D)  transition zone. 
E)  convection zone.

Question 20

Two pairs of sunspots appear similar,but if one photo was made in 1990,and the next photo was made in 2002,what difference would we note?

Accepted Answer

In the 12 years,the

Exam 16: The Sun: Our Parent Star

What natural barrier tries to prevent two protons from combining?

Visible sunspots lie in the:

The percentage (by mass)of the Sun that is helium is about:

The Sun is a fairly normal star.

Why couldn't you stand on the Sun's surface?

Hydrostatic equilibrium in our Sun is the balance between:

The temperature of the layer of gas that produces the visible light of the Sun is:

There appears to be a correlation between the 22-year solar cycle and:

Explain what is meant by the solar cycle.What role does magnetism play?

Loops of glowing hydrogen seen hanging over the solar limb during totality are:

What two energy transport mechanisms,in order from outside the core to the surface,are found in the Sun?

When the chromosphere can be seen during a solar eclipse,it appears:

The solar winds blow outward from:

The critical temperature the core must reach for a star to shine by fusion is:

What is the size of a typical granule or convection cell seen in the photosphere?

Sunspots are only about 2,000 K cooler than the much brighter photosphere.

As with Uranus,the solar equator rotates slower than sunspots at higher latitudes.

Auroras are most brilliant during periods of increased solar activity.

The area in the Sun's atmosphere located above the chromosphere (1,500-10,000 km)where the temperature rises dramatically is called the:

Two pairs of sunspots appear similar,but if one photo was made in 1990,and the next photo was made in 2002,what difference would we note?

Charting the Heavens: The Foundations of Astronomy

The Copernican Revolution: The Birth of Modern Science

Radiation: Information from the Cosmos

Spectroscopy: The Inner Workings of Atoms

Telescopes: The Tools of Astronomy

The Solar System: Comparative Planetology and Formation Models

Earth: Our Home in Space

The Moon and Mercury: Scorched and Battered Worlds

Venus: Earth's Sister Planet

Mars: A Near Miss for Life?

Jupiter: Giant of the Solar System

Saturn: Spectacular Rings and Mysterious Moons

Uranus and Neptune: The Outer Worlds of the Solar System

Solar System Debris: Keys to Our Origin

Exoplanets: Planetary Systems Beyond Our Own

The Stars: Giants,Dwarfs,and the Main Sequence

The Interstellar Medium: Gas and Dust among the Stars

Star Formation: A Traumatic Birth

Stellar Evolution: The Life and Death of a Star

Stellar Explosions: Novae,Supernovae,and the Formation of the Elements

Neutron Stars and Black Holes: Strange States of Matter

The Milky Way Galaxy: A Spiral in Space

Galaxies: Building Blocks of the Universe

Galaxies and Dark Matter: The Large-Scale Structure of the Cosmos

Cosmology: The Big Bang and the Fate of the Universe

The Early Universe: Toward the Beginning of Time

Life in the Universe: Are We Alone?

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