The Sun

The Sun

Our sun is a fairly average Class G2 star located in an arm of a typical spiral galaxy in a rather non-descript part of the universe. But the sun is very special too: it is the only star we know of that supports Life with its energy. If you're an alien, then you might know of another star that supports life! The temperature of the surface of the sun is a mere 5500℃, not much hotter than a finely tuned oxy-acetylene torch. Yet the surface area of the sun is so immense, it radiates away 5 million tonnes of its mass each second in the form of electromagnetic radiation and neutrinos. Even so, it will maintain this life-giving output of starlight for another five billion years, before it suddenly runs out of nuclear fuel. As the sun dies, it will become a red giant, swallowing Mercury and Venus and possibly Earth as well, and finally settle down as a white dwarf. [TB] {SL}