Prominence refers to the sun sending out tongues of fire that reaches a great distance. It is usually called solar prominence. It is defined as a large and bright extension from the sun. It extends from the sun’s surface, usually in the shape of a loop. It is found that a prominence is usually starting from the sun’s visible layer called the photosphere, and then extends to the outer layer called the corona. Though the corona is composed of different [...]

The Sun, Moon, stars and other celestial objects are beyond the reach of any instrument that can be used by observers here on Earth. Measuring the distance of a celestial object from the Earth might seem to be complicated. But measuring the distance of these remote entities have been simplified by the concept of parallax.

The word interplanetary is associated with various space terms. It may mean a medium, an established theory, or even space, much like the term intergalactic. This term also means, between or across planets and is considered the lowered version of the word intergalactic.

Ever wonder why this colorless, odorless, tasteless non-toxic gas is named strong>Helium? The name Helium comes from a Greek word Helios meaning sun. It was in the Sun that this element was first discovered. In 1868 a French Scientist, Jules Janssen was observing a total solar eclipse. He noticed a bright yellow spectrum and thought it was Sodium. It was Norman Lockyer who discovered that this line of thinking did not match that of the spectral line of sodium. He [...]

The Sun’s astrosphere is composed of several layers that include the heliosphere, heliosheath, heliopause and the termination shock. Heliosphere can be thought of as a bubble in space surrounding the sun. It shields and helps protect the earth from harmful intergalactic radiation. These radiations can destroy DNA and can make climate not suitable for existence. Without the heliosphere life on Earth would be impossible.

Solar flares are large explosions produced by the Sun emitting x-rays and UV radiation and disrupting long-range radio communications in the process. The correlation of solar flare to the appearance of more sunspots is not clear but scientists have observed that there are more flares when the Sun has more sunspots. A first quarter flare is a solar flare occurring within the first quarter of the Sun’s 11-year cycle (solar cycle). While the solar cycle is mostly irregular (it can [...]

The Sun follows a periodic cycle of activity. This cycle, called the Solar Cycle or Solar Magnetic Activity Cycle, is the periodic recurrence of sunspots, or darker, relatively cool regions at the Sun’s surface. This was discovered by Samuel Heinrich Scwabe in 1843 when he observed the variation of the number of sunspots over a seventeen-year period. The solar cycle usually lasts about eleven years on the average. It has two extremes: the solar maximum is the period on the [...]

What is the exact density of the Sun? It is made of hydrogen and helium, two of the lightest elements known. Does it mean it’s not very dense? What factors affect stellar density and how do we compute the Sun’s density? Does gravity have any effect at all? These are just some of the questions regarding the Sun and its density. One doesn’t have to be a scientist in order to understand and analyze it. What is density in the [...]

How does the fusion in the Sun work? The Sun is very hot. In fact, it is so hot that it provides enough warmth and light to our planet. How did it become hot in the first place? The Sun is made up of light gasses, specifically hydrogen. What happens to hydrogen inside its core that makes it extremely hot? This is where fusion comes in. Knowing the part that fusion plays in the Sun’s current state right may also [...]

What color is the Sun when looked at from Earth and from outer space? Everybody knows that the Sun is a very hot star. It gives out light and electromagnetic waves. These waves have colours ranging from violet to red. The colour yellow is what most people associate the Sun with. But is that the true colour of the Sun? Does the Earth’s atmosphere have any effects on its colour? If one would go to space, would the Sun still [...]