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Our sun is a typical star: average mass, average temperature, and middle-aged. The sun (and all other stars for that matter) is far from being boring, though. It is actually a giant ball of burning gas (mostly hydrogen and helium), constantly flaring up, and a very hostile place. To safely view our nearest star, come out on Solar SUNdays. Here is some fun information on the sun:
The geeky stuff ... In order to produce energy in the form of light, and to keep from collapsing under its own gravity, our sun must fuse atoms together. Because of quantum mechanics, a proton can be turned into a neutron under certain conditions. To acquaint yourself with the properties of an atom, click here. Our sun converts hydrogen into helium through a process called the proton-proton chain. At a certain point, the star will begin to fuse helium atoms into heavier elements (like carbon and oxygen).
*Images courtesy of SOHO/EIT consortium. SOHO is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA. |
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Website last updated March 16, 2006. Hosted by Anthony Watts, KMXI Radio. Webmasters Tiara Norris and Brendan Diamond. |
The very best site on the internet that we have found for
information on the sun is at 