Sunspots, the solar cycle and space weather
Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
Drawing of the Sun's surface with dark sunspots. Why do sunspots look dark, by Ari's reading (NOAA)?
- They are shadows cast by planets
- They are holes showing a cold core
- They are cooler than the surface around them
- They are hotter and give off less light
Read this first
Sun surface temperatures (NOAA)
Region Temperature sunspot center about 7,000 °F (3,900 °C) photosphere about 10,000 °F (5,500 °C) NOAA gives sunspot centers about 7,000 °F (3,900 °C) and the photosphere around them about 10,000 °F (5,500 °C). Which is true, by Bo's reading?
- Sunspots are about 3,000 °F cooler
- Sunspots are about 3,000 °F hotter
- Both are the same temperature
- Sunspots are about 17,000 °F
What causes sunspots, by Kira's reading (NOAA)?
- Comets hitting the Sun
- Hot spots where the surface is hottest and glows brightest
- Fires on the Sun's surface
- Intense magnetic fields pushing up from inside
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?
- 1 year
- 19 years
- 5.3 years, start to peak
- 11 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
- Sunlight reflecting off polar ice
- Moonlight shining through clouds
- 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)?
- Out near the Moon
- In clouds about 1 to 2 km up
- About 80 to 500 km up
- At ground level, on the ice
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?
- G3, the middle level
- Each G level is the same strength
- G5, extreme
- G1, since it comes first
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 8 minutes, like flare light
- About 15 to 18 seconds
- About 11 years
- About 15 to 18 hours
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)?
- Across the whole country
- As far south as Florida
- At high latitudes, such as northern Maine
- Nowhere; auroras need daylight