The Sun's Fury: Celebrating Solar Maximum at The Lawrence Planetarium

Ellen Torres Thompson

Planetarium Specialist

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Program Overview: Names of the Sun

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• First question for the audience:“Why do you think it’s called the ‘Sun’?”
• Given answers: “Maybe ‘Sun’ means ‘hot’?” “It’s Latin?” Lots of shrugs/”I don’t know”s
• “Well, ‘Sun’ is just a name, like how my name is Ellen.” The Sun has different names in every language. What other names do you know?
• Chocenyo Ohlone: hišmen, given thank-you gifts
• Spanish: El Sol, from Latin Sol Invictus
• Mandarin: Tàiyáng, carried by goddes Xihe
• Tagalog: Araw, also means “day”

Program Overview: Cycles Of The Sun

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• Watch Sunset on the Winter Solstice

(12/21/24)

• Play The Lawrence closing

announcement, note that it’s dark outside when

the Lawrence closes at 5pm

• Watch the night pass by, travel to 11:00am. Pass out a pointer to point at the Sun
• Jump to Summer Solstice (6/20/2025). Note that it’s still 11:00am, but the Sun is much higher
• Time travel to 5pm. Closing announcement plays, but now it’s still light outside
• Watch sunset at 7:42p.m.

Program Overview: Activity 1/3

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• Determining the color of the Sun using planetarium cove lights and a polar bear stuffie
• “What color do you think the Sun is? I hear yellow, orange, red. Let’s do an experiment”
• “What color are polar bears? Yes, polar bears are white” + explain color of the Sun is whatever color light makes the polar bear White
• Try guessed colors, give opportunity to guess again: everyone now guesses white!
• Show that white light makes the polar bear white, as expected

Program Overview: Size of the Sun

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• Fly to the Sun

See OpenSpace layer of an

Intensitygram during Solar Max

(i.e. the Sun is white with many black

Sunspots).

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• “I’ll turn on a scale model of the Earth. Can you see it? No? Let’s zoom in” + can fit 1e6 Earths inside Sun
• Zoom out, scale model of Jupiter, zoom in, can fit 1e3, zoom out

Program Overview: Activity 2/3

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• Viewing an incandescent lightbulb through a diffraction grating
• Presenter passes out “a special tool” in a plastic baggie, gives a warning that the lightbulb will be very bright
• “What do you see? Yes, a rainbow!” + explain that White is the combination of all the rainbow colors
• Bonus: look at red light Exit signs

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Program Overview: EM Spectrum

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• Walk through EM spectrum showing data of the Sun paired with an everyday object. Highlight other exhibits at The Lawrence + UCB Science
• Ultraviolet: Butterfly in the Outdoor Nature Lab
• X-Ray: student presenter Hope
• Gamma Rays: SSL spacecraft data
• Infrared: Animal Discovery Zone reptiles
• Microwave: Microwave oven
• Radio: TVs and staff walkie-talkies

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Program Overview: Highlighting UC Berkeley Science

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• Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) observation of gamma rays
• “If you see the little blue dots, point them out with your finger. Would anyone like to point them out with my pointer?”

Program Overview: The Solar Magnetic Field

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• From OpenSpace Full Profile: Potential Field Source Surface (PFSS) model of the solar coronal magnetic field in 2012
• Compare this image with a picture of a bar magnet surrounded by iron filings

Program Overview: Activity 3/3

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• Counting sunspots in 11 photos of the Sun across 11 years
• 2020 photo taken at the last Solar Minimum
• 2024 taken during Solar Maximum, which we’re still in!

Program Overview: Solar Storms

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• From OpenSpace Full Profile: ENLIL model of solar wind during July 2012 solar storm(s)
• Watch several days of the model, make explosion sounds when you see a CME
• 2003 Solar Storm Video

Program Overview: Space Weather

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• From OpenSpace Full Profile: BATRUS J12 model of Earth’s Magnetosphere
• Explain that the Earth’s Magnetosphere protects us from the Solar Wind while watching several hours of the model

Program Overview: Space Weather

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• Magnetosphere doesn’t protect everything/eveyone
• Explain potential satelite malfunction/damage while looking at GPS
• Explain potential harm to ISS astronauts

Program Overview: Space Weather

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• Land back on Earth to see the most fun effect of Space Weather: Aurora!
• 360 video from Alaska of Northern Lights

Program Development: WorldViewer & OpenSpace

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Program Development: WorldViewer & OpenSpace

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• Buttons and speaker notes for Presenters

Program Development: Sharing OpenSpace Assets

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• Will add Visible Sun, scale models of Earth & Jupiter next to Sun to OpenSpace Hub
• Plans to create PASS-esque bundle of assets (such as OS custom profile and presenter guides

Program Reviews!

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• “This is a perfect example of exactly what we are trying to do at The Lawrence! - Claudia Bustos, Public Engagement Director
• “I just watched the new planetarium show on the sun with my boy. I'm so impressed with what you've done with this and other recent shows. So much more interesting, engaging and respectful of the kids than what typically passes for a planetarium show these days.” - Visitor Comment Card
• Student presenters report having a lot of fun presenting :)

Thankyou!

Questions?