10 Interesting Facts About The Sun

1. The mass of Sun is 2x10^27 tones.

2. The physical characteristics of the Sun in connection with Earth:

a. The diameter of is 1,392,000 km; this is 109 times the size of Earth.

b. The surface area is 6.0877×10^12

sq. km., which is 11,990 times that of Earth.

c. The volume of is 1.412×10^13 cub. Km., which is 1,300,000 times that of Earth.

3. In earlier times, people believed that the Sun was a big ball of fire. We now know the Sun’s mass consists of three quarters (3/4) of hydrogen and the remaining is helium. In the remaining ¼, 2% there are heavier elements like oxygen, neon, carbon, iron, etc. 

  Image via aerospace 

4. The current age is believed to 4.567 billion years. this was found by two different methodologies; they are:

a. Using computer models of stellar evolution and nucleocosmochronology.

b. Using radiometric date of the oldest Solar System material.

5. The different layers are the Core, Radiative zone, Convective zone, Photosphere, Chromosphere, Corona, Sunspot, Granules and Prominence. 

 Image via eclipse99 

6. If the Sun stops shining, when will we realize it? We will be able to realize it only after 8 minutes and 19 seconds as this is the time taken by the light to reach Earth from Sun.

7. The surface temperature of Sun is roughly 5,800 Kelvin (K), which is approximately 9,980 degrees F.

8. The magnetic polarity of the Sun changes every solar cycle. A solar cycle is typically an 11-year cycle.

 Image via zebu 

9. The temperature of the Sun is increasing at a considerable rate and is believed that roughly in another billion year’s time, it will be impossible for liquid water to exist. This shall make life impossible on Earth.

10. Sun rotates on its axis; the rotation is faster at the equator and is slower at the poles. It approximately takes 25.6 days at equator and 33.5 days at the poles.

Hope you were able to know some interesting facts about Sun!