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The sun is a fiery ball of gas from "summary" of The Secret World of Stargazing by Adrian West
The sun, our closest star, is a colossal celestial body that dominates our solar system. It is a luminous sphere of searing hot gases, primarily hydrogen and helium, that generate immense amounts of energy through a process known as nuclear fusion. This fusion process occurs at the sun's core, where temperatures reach a staggering 15 million degrees Celsius. The intense heat and pressure at the core cause hydrogen atoms to fuse together, forming helium and releasing a tremendous amount of energy in the form of light and heat. This energy radiates outwards, providing light and warmth to our planet and sustaining life as we know it. The sun's fiery appearance is due to the intense heat produced by the ongoing fusion reactions at its core. These reactions create a constant stream of energy that radiates outwards through the layers of gas that make up the sun's atmosphere. The sun's surface, known as the photosphere, is the visible layer where most of its light is emitted. This layer has a temperature of around 5,500 degrees Celsius and appears as a bright, glowing disc when viewed from Earth. Surrounding the photosphere is the chromosphere, a thin layer of gas that emits a reddish glow during solar eclipses. Above the chromosphere lies the sun's outermost layer, the corona, which extends millions of kilometers into space and is only visible during a total solar eclipse. Despite its fiery appearance, the sun is actually made up of gases rather than a solid mass. Its immense size and gravitational pull allow it to contain more than 99% of the total mass of our solar system. The sun's gravity is so strong that it holds the planets in orbit around it and influences the motion of objects throughout the solar system. In addition to providing light and warmth, the sun plays a crucial role in maintaining the delicate balance of life on Earth. Its energy drives the weather patterns, ocean currents, and plant growth that sustain all living organisms. Without the sun's life-giving energy, Earth would be a cold and desolate world incapable of supporting life.
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