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NASA wants you to help them study the sun’s shape during the total solar eclipse on April 8th. They need volunteers to use a special app called SunSketcher to record the eclipse with their smartphone cameras. This data will help scientists better understand how the sun’s rotation affects its shape.
News Reading in Levels
Beginner Level: NASA Needs Your Help to Study the Sun’s Shape
NASA is asking people to use their smartphones to record the total solar eclipse on April 8th. They want to learn more about the sun’s shape, which is not perfectly round. The sun’s rotation causes it to bulge slightly, a phenomenon called oblateness.
To participate, you need to download NASA’s free SunSketcher app. This app uses your phone’s camera and GPS to record the eclipse from your location. During the eclipse, the moon will pass in front of the sun. As it does, you may see flashes of light called Baily’s beads. These occur when sunlight passes over the moon’s craters and hills.
By comparing the beads to detailed maps of the moon’s surface, scientists can calculate the sun’s shape. But they need data from many locations to get an accurate picture. That’s where you come in! If enough people record the eclipse with SunSketcher, NASA can study the sun’s oblateness better than ever before.
Oblateness (noun) – the condition of being flattened or depressed at the poles.
Baily’s beads (noun phrase) – the series of bright points of light that sometimes appear around the rim of the Moon’s disk during a total solar eclipse.
Phenomenon (noun) – a fact or situation that is observed to exist or happen, especially one whose cause or explanation is in question.
Bulge (verb) – to swell or stick out in a curved or rounded shape.
Depressed (adjective) – flattened or sunken inward.
Intermediate Level: Unraveling the Mystery of the Sun’s Elliptical Shape
While the sun may appear perfectly spherical from Earth, it is actually slightly elliptical in shape due to its rotation. This phenomenon, known as oblateness, occurs when the centrifugal force generated by a rotating body causes it to bulge outwards at the equator and flatten at the poles.
NASA is calling on citizen scientists to help study the sun’s oblateness during the upcoming total solar eclipse on April 8th. By participating in the agency’s SunSketcher program, volunteers can contribute valuable data that will allow astronomers to better understand the sun’s interior structure and rotation dynamics.
To take part, individuals within the path of totality need to download the free SunSketcher app and use their smartphone’s camera to record the eclipse. As the moon passes in front of the sun, it will create a phenomenon called Baily’s beads – flashes of light that occur when sunlight passes through the moon’s craters and valleys.
By analyzing these beads and matching them to detailed lunar topography maps, scientists can calculate the sun’s precise shape and size with an accuracy far greater than current measurements. This information can then be used to study how the sun’s gravity influences the orbits of inner planets and test various gravitational theories.
Elliptical (adjective) – having a shape resembling an ellipse; oval.
Centrifugal force (noun phrase) – the force that seems to pull something away from the center as it rotates.
Oblateness (noun) – the condition of being flattened or depressed at the poles.
Totality (noun) – the total or complete phase of an eclipse.
Dynamics (noun) – the branch of mechanics that deals with the motion of bodies under the action of forces.
Native Level: NASA Turns to Citizen Scientists for Unprecedented Solar Insights
NASA is calling on citizen scientists to participate in an unprecedented study of the sun’s shape during the upcoming total solar eclipse on April 8th. Through the agency’s SunSketcher program, volunteers can contribute vital data that could significantly enhance our understanding of the sun’s oblateness – the slight elliptical deformation caused by its rotation.
To participate, individuals within the path of totality need to download the free SunSketcher app and use their smartphone’s camera to record the eclipse. As the moon passes in front of the sun, it will create a phenomenon known as Baily’s beads – fleeting flashes of light that occur when sunlight passes through the moon’s craters and valleys.
By analyzing these beads and correlating them with detailed lunar topography maps, astronomers can calculate the sun’s precise shape and size with an accuracy far surpassing current measurements. This data can then be used to study how the sun’s gravity influences the orbits of inner planets and test various gravitational theories.
According to NASA, the sun’s oblateness is influenced by its interior structure and rotation dynamics, which vary with latitude. Additionally, gas flows accompanying the sun’s magnetic activity and convection are believed to create transient distortions in its shape.
Oblateness (noun) – the condition of being flattened or depressed at the poles.
Deformation (noun) – the action or process of deforming or being deformed; distortion.
Baily’s beads (noun phrase) – the series of bright points of light that sometimes appear around the rim of the Moon’s disk during a total solar eclipse.
Transient (adjective) – lasting only for a short time; impermanent.
Convection (noun) – the movement caused within a fluid by the tendency of hotter and therefore less dense material to rise, and colder, denser material to sink until a uniform temperature is established.
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The Bottom Line
The total solar eclipse on April 8th offers a unique opportunity to study the sun’s shape in greater detail than ever before. NASA is counting on citizen scientists to record the eclipse with their smartphones and contribute data to the SunSketcher program. With enough participation, researchers can gain unprecedented insights into the sun’s oblateness and how it affects the orbits of nearby planets. This knowledge could also help test various gravitational theories. By harnessing the power of citizen science, we can deepen our understanding of our nearest star.
References
- Forbes: NASA Asks U.S. Public To Look At Clouds During April 8’s Total Solar Eclipse
- Popular Science: NASA needs your smartphone during April’s solar eclipse
