The Sun
Our star: a ball of hot gas so big that 1.3 million Earths would fit inside.
Every sunrise, noon and sunset is really the Earth turning. The Sun stays put; we spin towards it in the morning and away from it in the evening.
Its path across the sky changes through the year. In summer it climbs high and stays up long; in winter it skims low and sets early. That tilt is why we have seasons.
Never look straight at the Sun, and never through binoculars or a telescope without a proper solar filter.
Facts
- Distance
- 150 million km — light takes 8 minutes 20 seconds
- Size
- 109 times wider than Earth
- Surface temperature
- about 5,500 °C
- Age
- about 4.6 billion years
Did you know?
Understand it
Why do the Sun and stars move across the sky?
They don't — the Earth spins once a day, and we're carried along.
Why is the Sun higher in summer?
The Earth's axis is tilted 23.4°, so through the year our hemisphere leans towards and then away from the Sun.
Why doesn't it get dark right after sunset?
Sunlight still reaches the air high above us and scatters down, fading slowly as the Sun sinks further.