Sun
Our Star
The Latest: On Aug. 12, 2018, NASA's historic Parker Solar Probe mission set sail for the Sun. Parker Solar Probe will revolutionize our understanding of the Sun, where changing conditions can propagate out into the solar system, affecting Earth and other worlds. The spacecraft will travel through the Sun's atmopshere, closer to the surface than any spacecraft before it, facing brutal heat and radiation conditions—and ultimately providing humanity with the closest-ever observations of a star.
The Sun, at the heart of our solar system, is a yellow dwarf star, a hot ball of glowing gases. Its gravity holds the solar system together, keeping everything from the biggest planets to the smallest particles of debris in its orbit. Electric currents in the Sun generate a magnetic field that is carried out through the solar system by the solar wind—a stream of electrically charged gas blowing outward from the Sun in all directions.
The connection and interactions between the Sun and Earth drive the seasons, ocean currents, weather, climate, radiation belts and aurorae. Though it is special to us, there are billions of stars like our Sun scattered across the Milky Way galaxy. Explore the Sun ›
Ten Things to Know About the Sun
If the Sun were as tall as a typical front door, Earth would be about the size of a nickel. The Sun is the center of our solar system and makes up 99.8 percent of the mass of the entire solar system. At the equator, the Sun spins once about every 25 days, but at its poles the Sun rotates once on its axis every 35 Earth days. As a star, the Sun is a ball of gas (92.1 percent hydrogen and 7.8 percent helium) held together by its own gravity. The Sun does not have any rings. Many spacecraft constantly observe the Sun, helping us keep an eye on space weather that can affect satellites and astronauts. Without the Sun's intense energy, there would be no life on Earth. The Sun's core is about 27 million degrees Fahrenheit (15 million degrees Celsius). But orbited by eight planets, at least five dwarf planets, tens of thousands of asteroids, and up to three trillion comets and icy bodies. The Sun’s visible surface sometimes has dark sunspots, which are areas of intense magnetic activity that can lead to solar explosions.
Ten Things to Know About Our Sun
1
Biggest
2
Most Massive
3
Different Spins
Sun Shines in High-Energy X-rays
4
Can’t Stand On It
5
Ringless
6
Under Study
7
Energy For Life
8
Nuclear Fusion
9
Moonless
10
What We See
Two Long Filaments
Pop Culture
The Sun has inspired mythological stories in cultures around the world, including those of the ancient Egyptians, the Aztecs of Mexico, Native American tribes of North and South America, the Chinese, and many others.
In more recent times, the Sun adorns everything from album covers, such as Sublime's iconic 1992 debut, to packages of raisins, while it influences stories in comics, theatrical films and everything in between.
If you're Superman (or a fellow Kryptonian), your powers are heightened by the yellow glow of our Sun, and you can even dispose of dangerous materials like Superboy once did, by hurling them into the Sun. And in the 2007 film Sunshine, the Sun is dying, leaving Earth in a state of deep freeze. To save humanity, a crewed spacecraft is on its way to reignite the Sun with a bomb, though things don't go quite as planned.
