radiative zone

American  

noun

1. Astronomy, Physics. the part of a star just outside its core, through which energy is transferred by radiation rather than convection.

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radiative zone Scientific  

/ rā′dē-ə-tĭv /

1. The layer of a star that lies just outside the core, to which radiant energy is transferred from the core in the form of photons. In this layer, photons bounce off other particles, following fairly random paths until they enter the convection zone. Despite the high speed of photons, it can take hundreds of thousands of years for radiant energy in the Sun's radiative zone to escape and enter the convection zone.

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Example Sentences

It could possibly occur within the sun’s radiative zone as well.

From Scientific American • Jun. 16, 2023

Deep inside the sun is a dense radiative zone, where photons slowly fight their way outward.

From Science Magazine • May 30, 2019

The Sun, our star, has several layers beneath the visible surface: the core, radiative zone, and convective zone.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

Most solar researchers agree that the solar dynamo is located in the convection zone or in the interface layer between the convection zone and the radiative zone below it.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

It is a thick layer approximately 200,000 kilometers deep that transports energy from the edge of the radiative zone to the surface through giant convection cells, similar to a pot of boiling oatmeal.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016