THE SUN
THE SUN
THE SUN
THE SUN
About SUN
The sun is a star, specifically a yellow dwarf star, that is the central
body of our solar system. It's a massive, hot ball of plasma, primarily
composed of hydrogen and helium, where nuclear fusion reactions
generate energy. This energy is radiated outward, including visible
light and infrared radiation, which are essential for life on Earth. The
sun's gravity holds the solar system together, influencing planetary
orbits and other celestial objects. Sun is a 4.5 billion-year-old yellow
dwarf star – a hot glowing ball of hydrogen and helium – at the center
of our solar system. It’s about 93 million miles (150 million kilometers)
from Earth and it’s our solar system’s only star. Without the Sun’s
energy, life as we know it could not exist on our home planet. The Sun
would have been surrounded by a disk of gas and dust early in its
history when the solar system was first forming, about 4.6 billion
years ago. Some of that dust is still around today, in several dust
rings that circle the Sun. They trace the orbits of planets, whose
The Sun has several regions. The interior regions include the core, the radiative zone, and the convection
zone. Moving outward – the visible surface or photosphere is next, then the chromosphere, followed by
the transition zone, and then the corona – the Sun’s expansive outer atmosphere.
Once material leaves the corona at supersonic speeds, it becomes the solar wind, which forms a huge
magnetic "bubble" around the Sun, called the heliosphere. The heliosphere extends beyond the orbit of
the planets in our solar system. Thus, Earth exists inside the Sun’s atmosphere. Outside the heliosphere
is interstellar space.
The core is the hottest part of the Sun. Nuclear reactions here – where hydrogen is fused to form helium –
power the Sun’s heat and light. Temperatures top 27 million °F (15 million °C) and it’s about 86,000
miles (138,000 kilometers) thick. The density of the Sun’s core is about 150 grams per cubic centimeter
(g/cm³). That is approximately 8 times the density of gold (19.3 g/cm³) or 13 times the density of lead
(11.3 g/cm³).
Energy from the core is carried outward by radiation. This radiation bounces around the radiative zone,
taking about 170,000 years to get from the core to the top of the convection zone. Moving outward, in
the convection zone, the temperature drops below 3.5 million °F (2 million °C). Here, large bubbles of hot
plasma (a soup of ionized atoms) move upward toward the photosphere, which is the layer we think of as
the Sun's surface.
•The Sun is a star
– It may look different, but the Sun is actually a giant star at the center of our solar system!
•It's HUGE
– You could fit 1.3 million Earths inside the Sun!
•The Sun is really hot
– Its surface temperature is around 5,500°C (9,932°F), and the core can reach 15 million°C (27
million°F)!
•It's super far away
– The Sun is about 93 million miles (150 million km) from Earth.
•Light takes time to reach us
– It takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds for sunlight to reach Earth!
•The Sun has layers
– It has several layers: core, radiative zone, convective zone, photosphere, chromosphere, and
corona.
•It's mostly hydrogen
– About 74% hydrogen and 24% helium – that's the Sun’s main fuel!
•Sunspots are cooler spots
– These are darker, cooler areas on the surface caused by magnetic activity.
•The Sun keeps us alive
– It provides light, heat, and energy that plants (and we!) need to survive.
•The Sun won't last forever
– It's about 4.6 billion years old, and scientists believe it has around 5 billion more years to go.
