Environmental Studies · Physics

Solar Radiation and Energy

876 Questions

Enhance your general science knowledge with these questions on solar radiation and energy. The topics span solar thermal power plants, photovoltaic devices, and the sun's energy output. This material is useful for environmental studies and physics.

Solar energy conversionSun luminosity and compositionAtmospheric reflectionSolar thermal technology

Solar Radiation and Energy Questions

Multiple choice

The sun's energy drives which of the following processes?

  1. earthquakes

  2. volcanic eruptions

  3. mountain building

  4. weather and ocean circulation
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The sun provides the external energy that drives atmospheric and surface processes, including weather patterns and ocean currents. Earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain building are driven by internal heat from Earth's core.

Multiple choice

What are the two sources of energy for the Earth system?

  1. lightning and the sun

  2. the sun and Earth's interior

  3. the sun and wind

  4. Earth's interior and the winds
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Earth system is powered by two main sources: the sun (external energy for surface processes) and Earth's interior (internal energy for geological processes).

Multiple choice

Energy from the Sun heats the surface and this heats the air when...

  1. when the air heats up

  2. when the ozone is thinning

  3. molecules to bump into each other

  4. air rises and then falls
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Heat transfer from the surface to the air occurs through conduction, where the kinetic energy of surface molecules is transferred to air molecules through direct contact, causing them to bump into each other.

Multiple choice

Energy reaches the Earth from the Sun by radiation because radiation...

  1. doesn't need to travel through air

  2. will heat the air as it travels

  3. causes molecules to bump into each other

  4. causes air to rise and fall
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Radiation is the transfer of energy through electromagnetic waves. Unlike conduction or convection, radiation does not require a medium (like air or water) to travel through, allowing it to move through the vacuum of space.

Multiple choice

What is the sun mainly made from?

  1. Gas

  2. Liquid lava

  3. Rock

  4. Molten iron
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The sun is a star composed primarily of hydrogen and helium gas. Nuclear fusion in its core converts hydrogen into helium, releasing vast amounts of energy.

Multiple choice

How does the Sun produce energy?

  1. By burning coal

  2. By nuclear fusion

  3. By nuclear fission

  4. With an electric heater
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Sun produces energy through nuclear fusion, where hydrogen atoms fuse together to form helium. This process releases a massive amount of energy in the form of light and heat.

Multiple choice physics sources of energy non-conventional sources of energy electric energy generation and environment renewable and non-renewable energy

Sun is the ultimate source of energy for the earth.

  1. True

  2. False

  3. Ambiguous

  4. Data insufficient
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The sun is the ultimate source of almost all kinds of energy on earth,

either directly or indirectly.
Directly sun gives us solar power and is perfect non-conventional energy source.
Moreover, Fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) are the

transformed forms of plants (and animals) which once lived on the earth

and grew capturing the energy of the sun. Biomass is a product of

photosynthesis where the sun has the major role. Hydro-electricity

depends upon the water cycle which again is dependent on solar

radiation. Similarly, wind energy, tidal power, wave power all, in some

way or other, and depend on the sun.

Multiple choice physics towards green energy non-conventional sources of energy electric energy generation and environment renewable and non-renewable energy

Geothermal energy can be best described as:

  1. light energy from Sun.

  2. heat energy from rocks inside Earth's surface.

  3. heat energy from temperature difference in tides.

  4. heat energy from combustion of minerals.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Geothermal energy is heat from within the Earth. The core and lower part of mantle generates large amount of heat. Deep, super heated water present, can be pumped to surface and used to produce electricity.

Multiple choice physics towards green energy non-conventional sources of energy electric energy generation and environment renewable and non-renewable energy

Solar energy can be used to produce

  1. Electrical energy

  2. Mechanical energy

  3. Heat energy

  4. All of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Solar energy can be converted into electrical energy using photovoltaic cells, heat energy using solar thermal collectors, and mechanical energy through various solar-powered engines or systems.

Multiple choice stefan's law black body radiation heat transfer thermal properties physics

The temperature of the sun is doubled, the rate of energy received on earth will be increased by a factor of :

  1. 2

  2. 4

  3. 8

  4. 16
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

We know that from Stefan's Boltzmann relation: $E\propto { T }^{ 4 }$
if the temperature of the sun will be doubled, then : $E\propto ({ 2T })^{ 4 }$
Hence, $E\  will\  increase \ by \ the \ factor \ of \  { 16}$.

Multiple choice stefan's law black body radiation heat transfer thermal properties physics

The Sun delivers ${{10}^{3}}W/{{m}^{2}}$ of electromagnetic flux to the Earth's surface.The total power that is incident on a roof of dimensions $8m\times 20m$, will be

  1. $6.4\times { 10 }^{ 3 }W$
  2. $3.4\times { 10 }^{ 4 }W$
  3. $1.6\times { 10 }^{ 5 }W$

  4. none of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Here the power per unit area is given, $I=10^3  W/m^2$

So, the total power $=I\times $ area of roof $=10^3\times (8\times 20)=1.6\times 10^5 W$ 

Multiple choice stefan's law black body radiation heat transfer thermal properties physics

Assertion (A): The radiation from the sun surface varies as the fourth power of its absolute temperature.
Reason (R): Sun is not a black body

  1. Both A and R are true, R is correct explanation of A

  2. Both A and R are true, R is not correct explanation of A

  3. A is true but R is false

  4. Both A and R are false
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

According to Stefan's law, energy emitted is proportional to fourth power of absolute temperature.
So, the same will hold for the sun.
Also, Sun can absorb/emit radiations of all wavelengths - so it is a black body.
So, assertion and reason are both correct.
But reason is not a correct explanation of assertion.
Because all bodies emit energy which is proportional to fourth power of absolute temperature, not only sun.