An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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The → blackbody surface of the → Universe defined at a → redshift of about z ≥ 2 × 10⁶. This is distinct from the → last scattering surface, in other words the → cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR), which refers to z = 1100. Prior to the epoch of the blackbody photosphere the distortions from the → Big Bang are exponentially suppressed.

→ blackbody; → atmosphere.

1) The visible surface of the Sun (temperature 5700 K), just below the → chromosphere and just above the → convective zone. The solar photosphere is a thin layer of roughly 300 km wide. Its temperature decreases uniformly with height, from about 6,600 K (pressure 0.868 → millibars) at its bottom, to about 4,400 K (pressure 125 mb), where it merges with the chromosphere. The photosphere has a "rice-grain" appearance, called → granulation, caused by rising (hot) and falling (cool) material in the → convective cells just below the photosphere. Other main features of the photosphere are → sunspots, → faculae, and → supergranulation.
2) The region of a star which gives rise to the continuum radiation emitted by the star.

→ photo- + → sphere.