Table of Contents
In which layer do sunspots and solar flares occur?
the corona
Temperatures in the outer layer of the sun, known as the corona, typically fall around a few million kelvin. As solar flares push through the corona, they heat its gas to anywhere from 10 to 20 million K, occasionally reaching as high as 100 million K.
Where are sunspots located on the Sun?
photosphere
Sunspots are darker, cooler areas on the surface of the sun in a region called the photosphere. The photosphere has a temperature of 5,800 degrees Kelvin.
How do sunspots form on the Sun?
Sunspots are caused by disturbances in the Sun’s magnetic field welling up to the photosphere, the Sun’s visible “surface”. The powerful magnetic fields in the vicinity of sunspots produce active regions on the Sun, which in turn frequently spawn disturbances such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs).
Why are there sunspots on the sun’s photosphere?
Jump to navigation Jump to search. Sunspots are temporary phenomena on the Sun’s photosphere that appear as spots darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic field flux that inhibit convection. Sunspots usually appear in pairs of opposite magnetic polarity.
What makes the surface of the sun so active?
The Sun’s gases are constantly moving, which tangles, stretches and twists the magnetic fields. This motion creates a lot of activity on the Sun’s surface, called solar activity. Sometimes the Sun’s surface is very active. Other times, things are a bit quieter. The amount of solar activity changes with the stages in the solar cycle.
Indicating intense magnetic activity, sunspots accompany phenomena such as coronal loops, prominences, and reconnection events. Most solar flares and coronal mass ejections originate in magnetically active regions around visible sunspot groupings.
Which is the highest sunspot period in the solar cycle?
Solar cycle. The point of highest sunspot activity during a cycle is known as solar maximum, and the point of lowest activity as solar minimum. This period is also observed in most other solar activity and is linked to a variation in the solar magnetic field that changes polarity with this period.