![]() Astronomers can tell a lot about the temperature of a star by its color, or its spectral type. Stars come in a variety of sizes and colors so it should be no surprise that they have different temperatures too. (Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben) The hottest and coolest stars NASA's Parker Solar Probe launched on Augon a mission to study the sun. In 2021 the probe became the fastest craft ever created by humans, passing the sun at 364,621 mph (692,018 kph). When it is closest to the sun, the Parker Solar Probe travels at 430,000 mph (700,000 kph), according to NASA's Parker Solar Probe page (opens in new tab). As it does this it will collect measurements of the corona and important data on solar winds, also taking images of the star. The craft will fly through the sun's atmosphere, withstanding violent temperatures, often coming as close to its surface as 3.8 million miles (6.1 million kilometers). One of the key missions of the Parker Solar Probe, launched in August 2018 and currently orbiting our star, will be to investigate why the corona defies stellar dynamic models by having a temperature greater that the photosphere. If you'd like to read more about this solar mystery check out this article on "Why is the sun's atmosphere hotter than its surface?". There are some ideas about where the energy comes from that heats the corona, but a definitive conclusion is yet to be made. But how is the sun's upper atmosphere hotter than the surface? It's a great question, and one that has scientists rather stumped. ![]() The sun's corona can reach temperatures of around 1.8 million degrees F to 3.6 million degrees F (1 to 2 million degrees C), that's up to 500 times hotter than the photosphere. Now you might think that temperatures here must be the lowest here since we are the farthest away from the heat-generating core… but that isn't the case. The sun's corona extends thousands of miles above the visible "surface" (photosphere) of the sun. Above the chromosphere lies the corona - the outermost layer of the sun's atmosphere. Now here is where things get a little bit strange. The chromosphere lies above the photosphere and temperatures range from approximately 11,000 degrees F (6,000 degrees C) nearest the photosphere to about 7,200 degrees F (4,000 degrees C) a couple of hundred miles higher up. Parker Solar Probe: Mission to touch the sun The sun's atmosphere: Photosphere, chromosphere and corona temperatures Plasma in this layer moves in a convective motion - like boiling water - bubbles of hot plasma transport heat to the surface of the sun. Temperatures in the convection zone are approximately 4 million degrees F (2 million degrees C). Convection zone temperaturesīeyond the radiative zone is the sun's convective zone which extends for 120,000 miles (200,000 kilometers) according to. It can take light particles (photons) thousands of years to meander their way through this layer before reaching the surface of the sun. Instead, heat is transferred via thermal radiation whereby hydrogen and helium emit photons that travel a short distance prior to getting reabsorbed by other ions. ![]() No thermal convection occurs in this layer, according to the science news website (opens in new tab). Outside the sun's core lies the radiative zone where temperatures range from 12 million degrees F (7 million degrees C) nearest the core to around 4 million degrees F (2 million degrees C) in the outer radiative zone, according to the educational website (opens in new tab). The energy then radiates outward to the sun's surface, atmosphere and beyond. The continual nuclear fusion, causes energy to build up and the sun's core reaches temperatures of about 27 million degrees F (15 million degrees C).
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