Sunspots, the solar cycle and space weather
Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
What causes sunspots, by Kira's reading (NOAA)?
- Intense magnetic fields pushing up from inside
- Hot spots where the surface is hottest and glows brightest
- Comets hitting the Sun
- Fires on the Sun's surface
Sunspot-number graph showing rises and falls over several decades. About how long is one solar cycle, by Jun's reading (NOAA)?
- About 1 year
- About 11 years
- There is no repeating pattern
- About 11 days
Read this first
Yearly sunspot number (model data shaped like Cycle 24)
Year Sunspot number 2009 3 2011 80 2014 115 2017 22 2019 4 When is solar maximum in this cycle, by Luz's reading?
- 2009, at the start
- 2019, with the fewest
- 2014, with the most sunspots
- 2017
Solar Cycle 24 (NOAA)
Event Date began December 2008 peaked April 2014 ended December 2019 NOAA says Cycle 24 began in December 2008, peaked in April 2014 and ended in December 2019. About how long did it last, by Milo's math?
- 5.3 years, start to peak
- 1 year
- 11 years
- 19 years
Drawing of a green and red aurora above a dark horizon. What makes an aurora, by Noah's reading (NOAA)?
- Lightning far over the horizon
- Moonlight shining through clouds
- Sunlight reflecting off polar ice
- Electrons hitting oxygen and nitrogen high up make them glow
Side view of the atmosphere with a height scale in kilometers and an aurora drawn high up. About how high above the ground do auroras form, by Pia's reading (NOAA)?
- In clouds about 1 to 2 km up
- About 80 to 500 km up
- At ground level, on the ice
- Out near the Moon
NOAA G scale
Level Name G1 minor G2 moderate G3 strong G4 severe G5 extreme Which level on NOAA's geomagnetic storm scale is strongest, by Ren's reading?
- G1, since it comes first
- Each G level is the same strength
- G3, the middle level
- G5, extreme
Use this
not to scale
About how long does light from a solar flare take to reach Earth, by Tala's reading?
- About 1 year
- About 3 days, like a slow CME arriving later
- About 8 minutes, at the speed of light
- It stops at the Moon
About how long do the fastest Earth-directed CMEs take to arrive, by Zee's reading (NOAA)?
- About 11 years
- About 8 minutes, like flare light
- About 15 to 18 hours
- About 15 to 18 seconds
Map of the United States with the G1 aurora line across northern Michigan and Maine. A G1 storm is forecast tonight. Where are auroras likely to be seen, by Esme's reading (NOAA)?
- As far south as Florida
- Nowhere; auroras need daylight
- At high latitudes, such as northern Maine
- Across the whole country