[Vo]: Re: More Waterfuel videos

[TP Sparber]

A Fantastic Web Site with great pictures etc.

The Sun:

http://mac01.eps.pitt.edu/harbbook/c_xiii/chap13.html

H. THE SOLAR WIND AND THE SUN'S MAGNETIC FIELD

"The solar corona is an extremely thin but intensely hot region surrounding the Sun. The extreme heat produces two effects. The first is that atoms tend to become ionized; that is, one or more electrons surrounding the nucleus tend to be ripped away and sent off on their own through space, leaving behind a positively charged atom. The second is that the coronal gases possess too much thermal energy to be constrained by the Sun's gravitational field, and they are literally blown away into the surrounding space. This outward flow of charged particles is known as the solar wind.

In a very real sense, the solar wind is an extension of the corona. Its ionized gases are continually expanding outward from the Sun, and so must be replenished from the transition region below. The exact mechanism by which this replenishment occurs remains one the Sun's mysteries, however."

Interactions Beyween The Sun And Earth:

http://mac01.eps.pitt.edu/harbbook/c_xiv/chap14.html

The Fate of The Earth, The Impact of Mankind:

http://mac01.eps.pitt.edu/harbbook/c_xvi/chap16.html

" There is no shortage of suggestions. In recent decades the public has been bombarded with warnings of imminent disaster from scientists and environmentalists alike to the point that many are weary of the constant doomsaying. In addition, for many who live in the industrialized countries, the quality of life does not appear to have suffered. Where it has, it is often perceived as a local problem."

http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/news-release/releases/2001/01-74.htm

 

"When the sun's protons hit the atmosphere they break up molecules of nitrogen gas and water vapor. When nitrogen gas molecules split apart, they can create molecules, called nitrogen oxides, which can last several weeks to months depending on where they end up in the atmosphere. Once formed, the nitrogen oxides react quickly with ozone and reduce its amounts. When atmospheric winds blow them down into the middle stratosphere, they can stay there for months, and continue to keep ozone at a reduced level.

Protons similarly affect water vapor molecules by breaking them up into forms where they react with ozone. However, these molecules, called hydrogen oxides, only last during the time period of the solar proton event. These short-term effects of hydrogen oxides can destroy up to 70 percent of the ozone in the middle mesosphere. At the same time, longer-term ozone loss caused by nitrogen oxides destroys a maximum of about nine percent of the ozone in the upper stratosphere. Only a few percent of total ozone is in the mesosphere and upper stratosphere with over 80 percent in the middle and lower stratosphere.

"If you look at the total atmospheric column, from your head on up to the top of the atmosphere, this solar proton event depleted less than one percent of the total ozone in the Northern Hemisphere," Jackman said.

While impacts to humans are minimal, the findings are important scientifically."