What is the sun?

The Sun is a star, a massive ball of gas, primarily hydrogen and helium, that illuminates and warms the planets and other celestial objects in our solar system through the process of nuclear fusion. The Sun is the closest star to Earth, located at the center of the solar system, around which all other planets and objects orbit.

The Sun has a diameter of about 1.4 million kilometers and is about 109 times larger than Earth. Its mass is about 330,000 times greater than that of Earth, accounting for about 99.86% of the total mass of the solar system. The surface of the Sun has a temperature of about 5,500 degrees Celsius (9,932 degrees Fahrenheit), and its core reaches temperatures of around 15 million degrees Celsius (27 million degrees Fahrenheit).

The Sun is an essential part of our lives, providing the energy needed for plants to grow and supporting life on Earth. It also has a significant impact on our planet's climate and weather patterns, influencing everything from global temperatures to the formation of hurricanes and other weather phenomena. Understanding the Sun's behavior and its influence on the solar system is critical to our understanding of the universe and our place within it.