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Picture of the Sun taken from Moscow. Photo courtesy of


Astronomical Unit: Distance from Earth to the Sun; about 150 million kilometers.

Aurora Borealis: Atmospheric phenomenon in Earth's magnetosphere. Aurora Borealis is located in the northern hemisphere.

Aurora Australis: Atmospheric phenomenon in Earth's magnetosphere. Aurora Australis is located in the southern hemisphere.

Black hole: the result of a massive star collapsing. Gravity acts so strongly on black holes that nothing can escape it.

Brown dwarf: Collection of matter that could not achieve nuclear fusion.

Chromosphere: layer of the sun above the photosphere, usually only visible during a solar eclipse

Coronoa: outermost layer of the sun's atmosphere

GigaYear (Gyr): 1 billion years

Main Sequence: Longest part of a star's lifespan. Stars with larger mass have shorter main sequences. Stars with smaller mas have longer main sequences.

Photosphere: visible surface of the sun

Protostar: cloud of gas that is beginning the process of nuclear fusion.


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Last modified: Monday, 23 June 2014, 4:31 PM