GeoScience U2: Part 1 Quiz Review - The Sun and Stellar Evolution

Flashcards covering key vocabulary, solar atmospheric layers, features of the Sun, and stages of stellar evolution based on mass.

Core

The center of the sun where nuclear fussion occurs.

Chromosphere

The layer of the sun's atmosphere that appears as a reddish glow.

Sunspot

Areas of gas on the sun's surface that are cooler than the gases around them.

How are sunspots formed?

Sunspots are formed when the Sun’s magnetic field peeks out to the surface

Corona

The layer of the sun's atmosphere that looks like a halo/crown during an eclipse.

What is Nuclear Fusion?

The joining of hydrogen atoms to form helium (only occurs in the core of stars).

How is Nuclear Fusion able to occur inside the core of stars?

Only from the crushing force of gravity and extreme temperatures.

Photosphere

The visible layer of the sun's atmosphere that gives off visible light.

Radiative zone

Outermost layer of sun's interior where light takes 100,000 years to escape.

Convection zone

The layer of the sun's interior where hot plasma rises and sinks when it cools.

What layer is shown in #1?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Convection Zone

What layer is shown in #2?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Radiative Zone

What layer is shown in #3?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Core

What layer is shown in #4?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Photosphere

What layer is shown in #5?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Chromosphere

What layer is shown in #6?

• Core

• Chromosphere

• Corona

• Radiative Zone

• Convection Zone

• Photosphere

Corona

What stage is the first stage in star formation?

A star’s life begins inside a nebula, a cloud of gas and dust where gravity clumps all the material together.

When all that cloud of gas and dust contracts and hears up, what is formed?

A Protostar

The lifetime of a star is dependent on its…

Mass

When the core of stars are hot and dense enough, what begins inside the core of stars?

Nuclear Fusion

Star’s spend the majority of time in this stage…

Main Sequence

During Main Sequence, what is a star fusing to create energy and light?

Hydrogen

For a brown dwarf star to form, what would the mass of star need to be? LESS or MORE

LESS - no nuclear fusion would be possible because there is not enough material

Why does a star become a red giant?

It has used up all its hydrogen fuel.

Our Sun is in its main-sequence stage. What are the next TWO stages our star will follow?

Red Giant and Planetary Nebula

Which option shows the correct stages a high mass star goes through to eventually become a black hole?

A