24.1 and 24.3 Vocabulary

24.1: The Study of Light

Electromagnetic Spectrum

• The arrangement of electromagnetic radiation according to wavelength

Photon

• A small packet of light energy

Spectroscopy

• The study of the properties of light that depend on wavelength

Continuous Spectrum

• An uninterrupted band of light emitted by an incandescent solid, liquid, or gas under pressure
• (Spectrum is similar to that of a rainbow, so the background makes sense)

Absorption Spectrum

• A continuous spectrum produced when white light is passed through a cool gas under low pressure
• The gas absorbs selected wavelengths of light, and the spectrum looks like it has dark lines superimposed

Emission Spectrum

• A series of bright lines of particular wavelengths produced by a hot gas under low pressure
• (Background is example of spectrum)

Untitled Slide

Doppler Effect

• The apparent change in frequency of electromagnetic or sound waves caused by the relative motions of the source and the observer

24.3: The Sun

Photosphere

• The region of the sun that radiates energy to space; visible surface of the sun

Chromosphere

• The first layer of the solar atmosphere found directly above the photosphere

Corona

• The outer weak layer of the solar atmosphere

Solar Wind

• Streams of protons and electrons ejected at high speed from the solar corona
• (Background is of someone wind-surfing, so it makes sense)

Sunspot

• A dark spot on the sun, which is cool by contrast to the surrounding photosphere

Prominence

• A concentration of gases above the solar surface that appears as a bright arch-like structure

Solar Flare

• A sudden and tremendous eruption in the solar chromosphere

Aurora

• A bright display of ever-changing light caused by solar radiation interacting with the upper atmosphere in the region of the poles

Nuclear Fusion

• The way in which the sun produces energy
• Occurs when less massive nuclei combine into more massive nuclei, releasing tremendous amounts of energy