Earth’s magnetic field        04/08/16

 

One of the main reasons why the Earth is capable of sustaining life is because of the ever present Magnetic field that it encases. The Earth’s magnetic field usually has an intensity of around 0.65 Gauss, which is enough to deflect charged particles from solar wind aimed at the planet. Also, the magnetic south pole is actually located near the Hudson bay in Canada (the poles are switched around in respect to our conceptual geographic location), so most compases do not point directly north. Every so often the Earth goes through a magnetic field reversal, in which the poles switch from one point to another. The magnetic field is thought to originate from moving iron magma in the outer core of the Earth. Some animals are thought to be able to detect the magnetic field of the earth through the use of biomagnetism, in which a piece of magnetite in the brain of the animal is able to respond to the magnetic field, acting as a sixth sense.

Sunspots           04/04/16

 

Sunspots are a most peculiar phenomena occurring in the solar system. Sunspots are regions of the sun that are darker and (relatively) cooler than the surrounding photosphere. Sunspots are a temporary phenomenon, usually with a lifespan lasting from several hours to several months. Sunspots can be carried around by the internal rotation of a stellar object. Consequently, the amount of sunspots on a sun have a sinusoidal variability (meaning that the amount of sunspots on the spot goes up and down with time) and this causes the sun to be slightly cooler during times of high sunspot activity. Sunspots also have a high magnetic activity, which in turn can be correlated with events such as coronal mass ejections.

Convection zone         04/02/16

 

The Convection zone is a layer of a stellar object that is unstable to convection. In this area of a star, all of the energy of this layer is driven completely by convection. This layer is “cool” enough to have heavier ions such as Calcium, nitrogen, carbon, and nitrogen. The convection zone is an important part for any star.

       Coronal mass ejection                   04/01/16

 

Coronal mass ejections are a very intriguing part of solar physics.During filament eruptions, a large amount of hot plasma encapsulated in a magnetic field may be released. Coronal mass ejections will then drift throughout space and if it comes into contact with the Earth, then a Geomagnetic storm may ensue. If the revolution of the magnetic field lines of the CME is in parallel with the magnetic field lines of the Earth, then there will be a large amount of magnetic interference and power grids will be completely shut off.

 

The photosphere    03/31/16

 

The photosphere of the sun is so important that if it were to not exist there would be no human life! The photosphere is the spherical surface encapsulating the sun that is thought to emit light. It is situated just above the convection zone of the sun. photosphere blocks certain wavelengths of light. The photosphere is often used to describe a star’s visible surface as it is the part that emits light.

Solar prominence         03/30/16

 

Solar prominences are one of the most important subjects in modern day astronomy. Solar prominences are Bright, gaseous features that extend out from the surface of the sun. Prominences are anchored to the photosphere of the sun in a loop-like geometry. A prominence can form in as little time as a day, and can last for months on end! Solar prominecnes can break apart and give rise to Coronoal mass ejections

Black holes         03/26/16

 

One of the most bewildering and fascinating phenomena of reality is that of black holes. Throughout the Universe there are sections of space that have such a high density that the geometry of the space-time becomes so warped that not even light can escape the gravitational pull of such objects. Black holes are usually created with the collapse of a insurmountably large star. The star has such a great contraction that the equivalent density would be if all of the Earth was shrunk down to a marble. Black holes can be of various sizes. A super massive black hole is thought to exist within  the center of the milky way. On February 11th, confirmation was received of gravitational waves originating from a black hole merger.  

Solar irradiance   03/19/16
Our Sun is the largest producer of energy in our solar system. This energy is often produced in the form of solar radiation. Because of this, scientists pay special attention to the study of solar irradiation. The unit used for measuring such radiation is wm2(WattsMeter2) because we often measure the energy striking the surface area of the earth. Part of the energy that reaches an object in the range of the sun’s energy is absorbed and part is reflected, depending on the level of it’s albedo (reflectivity). The amount of energy that a receives from a blast of sunlight is also contingent upon the Cosine of the angle between the surface and the light, imagine it like water striking object at an angle, if the angle is closer to zero, then a higher percentage of the medium will come into contact with the surface. The study of Solar irradiance has a very pragmatic purpose in the form of solar energy, since the energy that strikes the earth can be transferred into useful processes.