Russell+Snyder

= How does the sun and a solar flare work if there is no air?? =

A solar flare is a sudden, very rapid, intense difference in brightness. Flares occur when magnetic energy builds up in the solar atmosphere is randomly released. Radiation is emitted across practically the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from radio to gamma rays. The amount of energy released is the equivalent of millions of 100 megaton hydrogen bombs all going off at once.

On September 1 in 1859 the first recorded solar flare was spotted by Richard Carrington and Richard Hodgson. They were observing sunspots at the time when they viewed a huge burst in white light. As the magnetic energy is being released, particles, including electrons, protons, and heavy nuclei are heated and accelerated in the solar atmosphere.

//**__We say the sun burns, but it doesn’t burn like wood burns... Instead, the sun is a gigantic nuclear reactor.__**//