Question 1

Where does the corona steadily escape into space?

Accepted Answer

A) Coronal loops 
B) Transition region 
C) Coronal holes 
D) Above active regions 
A) Coronal loops 
B) Transition region 
C) Coronal holes 
D) Above active regions C

Question 2

Approximately how long does it take the energy produced in the Sun's core to reach the Sun's surface?

Accepted Answer

A) A second 
B) A year 
C) 1000 years 
D) 100,000 years 
A) A second 
B) A year 
C) 1000 years 
D) 100,000 years D

Question 3

Approximately how long is the main sequence lifetime of the sun?

Accepted Answer

A) 1 billion years 
B) 10 billion years 
C) 100 billion years 
D) 1,000 billion years 
A) 1 billion years 
B) 10 billion years 
C) 100 billion years 
D) 1,000 billion years B

Question 4

Where are coronal holes found?

Accepted Answer

A) Below the photosphere 
B) Above active regions 
C) Near the heliopause 
D) Between active regions 
A) Below the photosphere 
B) Above active regions 
C) Near the heliopause 
D) Between active regions

Question 5

Granules are

Accepted Answer

A) Holes in the Sun's corona 
B) Bubbles in the Sun's photosphere 
C) The dark centers of sunspots 
D) The same as prominences 
A) Holes in the Sun's corona 
B) Bubbles in the Sun's photosphere 
C) The dark centers of sunspots 
D) The same as prominences

Question 6

The four hydrogen nuclei that are fused together are more massive than the helium nucleus that they make.What happens to the missing mass?

Accepted Answer

A) It is converted to energy 
B) It is ejected from the star in flare activity 
C) It reappears later as neutrinos 
D) It is resupplied to the sun by meteoroid impacts 
A) It is converted to energy 
B) It is ejected from the star in flare activity 
C) It reappears later as neutrinos 
D) It is resupplied to the sun by meteoroid impacts

Question 7

How do we know that fission isn't responsible for the Sun's energy?

Accepted Answer

A) Fission doesn't produce enough energy per gram of fuel 
B) The Sun doesn't have enough hydrogen for fission to be important 
C) Fission would decrease the Sun's mass so rapidly it would be detectable 
D) There isn't very much fissionable material in the Sun 
A) Fission doesn't produce enough energy per gram of fuel 
B) The Sun doesn't have enough hydrogen for fission to be important 
C) Fission would decrease the Sun's mass so rapidly it would be detectable 
D) There isn't very much fissionable material in the Sun

Question 8

The two most abundant elements in the Sun are

Accepted Answer

A) Hydrogen and helium 
B) Hydrogen and lithium 
C) Helium and lithium 
D) Lithium and oxygen 
A) Hydrogen and helium 
B) Hydrogen and lithium 
C) Helium and lithium 
D) Lithium and oxygen

Question 9

What happens to the radiant energy produced in nuclear reactions in the core of the Sun?

Accepted Answer

A) It diffuses out of the Sun about 100,000 years after it is produced 
B) It escapes from the Sun at the speed of light a few seconds later 
C) It is quickly converted into neutrinos and immediately escapes from the Sun 
D) It triggers more nuclear reactions 
A) It diffuses out of the Sun about 100,000 years after it is produced 
B) It escapes from the Sun at the speed of light a few seconds later 
C) It is quickly converted into neutrinos and immediately escapes from the Sun 
D) It triggers more nuclear reactions

Question 10

Sunspots are:

Accepted Answer

A) Cool spots on the solar surface,relative to the rest of the solar surface. 
B) Warm spots on the solar surface,relative to the rest of the solar surface. 
C) magnetic storms that follow a 6 year cycle of activity. 
D) more than one of the above. 
A) Cool spots on the solar surface,relative to the rest of the solar surface. 
B) Warm spots on the solar surface,relative to the rest of the solar surface. 
C) magnetic storms that follow a 6 year cycle of activity. 
D) more than one of the above.

Question 11

The part of the Sun that emits most of the visible light is the

Accepted Answer

A) Chromosphere 
B) Core 
C) Corona 
D) Photosphere 
A) Chromosphere 
B) Core 
C) Corona 
D) Photosphere

Question 12

How was cleaning fluid used in the original solar neutrino telescope?

Accepted Answer

A) To provide chlorine atoms for the neutrinos to interact with 
B) To cool the telescope 
C) To focus the solar neutrinos 
D) To shield the detector in the telescope from cosmic rays 
A) To provide chlorine atoms for the neutrinos to interact with 
B) To cool the telescope 
C) To focus the solar neutrinos 
D) To shield the detector in the telescope from cosmic rays

Question 13

What is the most abundant element in the Sun?

Accepted Answer

A) Hydrogen 
B) Helium 
C) Carbon 
D) Positronium 
A) Hydrogen 
B) Helium 
C) Carbon 
D) Positronium

Question 14

What are spicules?

Accepted Answer

A) Jets of gas shooting upward in the chromosphere 
B) The dark cores of sunspots 
C) Energetic particles produced in nuclear reactions in the Sun 
D) Currents of hot gas in the interior of the Sun 
A) Jets of gas shooting upward in the chromosphere 
B) The dark cores of sunspots 
C) Energetic particles produced in nuclear reactions in the Sun 
D) Currents of hot gas in the interior of the Sun

Question 15

If the Sun stopped producing energy in its core,approximately how long would it be before we would see the Sun start to become significantly dimmer?

Accepted Answer

A) 8 minutes 
B) 1 year 
C) 100 years 
D) 100,000 years 
A) 8 minutes 
B) 1 year 
C) 100 years 
D) 100,000 years

Question 16

The Maunder minimum is

Accepted Answer

A) A period of time during which there were few if any sunspots 
B) The lowest temperature found on the Sun's surface 
C) The lowest latitude at which sunspots are found 
D) The minimum size that a sunspot may have 
A) A period of time during which there were few if any sunspots 
B) The lowest temperature found on the Sun's surface 
C) The lowest latitude at which sunspots are found 
D) The minimum size that a sunspot may have

Question 17

The outermost layer of the atmosphere of the Sun is the

Accepted Answer

A) Chromosphere 
B) Corona 
C) Photosphere 
D) Transition region 
A) Chromosphere 
B) Corona 
C) Photosphere 
D) Transition region

Question 18

What is the interval of time between one sunspot maximum and the next?

Accepted Answer

A) 11 weeks 
B) 11 months 
C) 11 years 
D) 11 centuries 
A) 11 weeks 
B) 11 months 
C) 11 years 
D) 11 centuries

Question 19

What part of the Sun do astronomers learn about when they study neutrinos from the Sun?

Accepted Answer

A) The core 
B) The corona 
C) Sunspots 
D) The convection zone 
A) The core 
B) The corona 
C) Sunspots 
D) The convection zone

Question 20

Which of the following are produced in the Sun's core and then pass out of the Sun in only a few seconds?

Accepted Answer

A) Photons 
B) Neutrinos 
C) Helium nuclei 
D) Protons 
A) Photons 
B) Neutrinos 
C) Helium nuclei 
D) Protons

Exam 17: The Sun

Where does the corona steadily escape into space?

Approximately how long does it take the energy produced in the Sun's core to reach the Sun's surface?

Approximately how long is the main sequence lifetime of the sun?

Where are coronal holes found?

Granules are

The four hydrogen nuclei that are fused together are more massive than the helium nucleus that they make.What happens to the missing mass?

How do we know that fission isn't responsible for the Sun's energy?

The two most abundant elements in the Sun are

What happens to the radiant energy produced in nuclear reactions in the core of the Sun?

Sunspots are:

The part of the Sun that emits most of the visible light is the

How was cleaning fluid used in the original solar neutrino telescope?

What is the most abundant element in the Sun?

What are spicules?

If the Sun stopped producing energy in its core,approximately how long would it be before we would see the Sun start to become significantly dimmer?

The Maunder minimum is

The outermost layer of the atmosphere of the Sun is the

What is the interval of time between one sunspot maximum and the next?

What part of the Sun do astronomers learn about when they study neutrinos from the Sun?

Which of the following are produced in the Sun's core and then pass out of the Sun in only a few seconds?

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