photosphere
noun
pho·to·sphere
ˈfō-tə-ˌsfir 
1
: a sphere of light or radiance
2
: the luminous surface layer of the sun or a star
Examples of photosphere in a Sentence
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The sun's photosphere, its surface, is about 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit (5,500 degrees Celsius), but the corona is two million degrees Fahrenheit (over 1,1 million degrees C) — about 200 times hotter.
—
Jamie Carter, Space.com, 16 June 2025
This allows the researchers to separately image the photosphere, chromosphere, interface region, and corona.
Because the spectrograph is fast, IRIS can combine big images with very fine spectra of every 240-km-wide slice of the scene.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 Dec. 2013
In November, the ESA released images the Solar Orbiter obtained in March 2023 that the agency said are the highest-resolution views of the sun's surface, known as the photosphere, to date.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 13 June 2025
The images show ultra-fine bright and dark stripes (called striations) in the thin, gaseous layer of the sun's atmosphere known as the photosphere, according to a statement from the National Solar Observatory (NSO), which operates the solar telescope.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 6 June 2025
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Jamie Carter, Space.com, 16 June 2025
This allows the researchers to separately image the photosphere, chromosphere, interface region, and corona.
Because the spectrograph is fast, IRIS can combine big images with very fine spectra of every 240-km-wide slice of the scene.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 Dec. 2013
In November, the ESA released images the Solar Orbiter obtained in March 2023 that the agency said are the highest-resolution views of the sun's surface, known as the photosphere, to date.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 13 June 2025
The images show ultra-fine bright and dark stripes (called striations) in the thin, gaseous layer of the sun's atmosphere known as the photosphere, according to a statement from the National Solar Observatory (NSO), which operates the solar telescope.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 6 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for photosphere
Cite this Entry
“Photosphere.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/photosphere. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
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