Physicists mimic gravity inside the sun using sound waves

[Admin]

The acoustically generated force will help astronomers better understand the sun's photosphere and the causes of space weather.

Physicists mimic gravity inside the sun using sound waves : Read more

 

[billslugg]

Solar activity is extremely complex and we do not fully understand the mechanics. There is heat moving out from inside forming convective cells, complicated by rotational Coriolis forces. Then there are magnetic forces arising from the movement of conductive fluids across magnetic field lines. The flowing currents further heat the fluid. The induced magnetic fields operate against the original fields. The fluid is ionized with some degree of charge separation, inducing electric forces. There are numerous feedback loops interacting with each other to produce a system that oscillates over a 22 year period, somewhat in synch with Jupiter's orbital period of 23.5 years.

 

[murgatroyd]

Whenever I look at a video of a coronal mass ejection, I marvel at the sheer volume of matter being hurled into space. It's a good-sized chunk of the sun that is lost forever. Makes it difficult to believe the sun is eight billion years old and has billions of years of lifetime ahead of it.

 

[billslugg]

Average CME is 1.6e12 kg. The mass of the Sun is 2e30 kg.On average there are about two per day. At this rate the Sun would be depleted after 1e18 ejections which would take 2e15 years or 127,000 times the age of the universe.