As we have already pointed out, scientists believe that the Sun will last for another 5 billion years. After that date, the energetic reactions will slow down and the Sun will become larger and larger until it becomes a red giant, which is another type of star. Then, it will become a white dwarf star that will cool down over the course of a trillion Earth years, causing the end of life on this planet as we know it today.
What are the parts of the Sun?
There are three main regions in the Sun : atmosphere, photosphere and core.
Atmosphere
The solar atmosphere is divided into two list of zambia consumer email large zones: the corona and the chromosphere.
, the one that is visible to us. It has a lower density than the Earth's atmosphere, is made of hydrogen and helium and has a variable thickness of a few million kilometres with a temperature of several million degrees.
The plasma generated there is retained by the magnetic fields created by the Sun's internal radiation. When a quantity of plasma escapes these magnetic fields, the so-called solar winds are produced, which affect the Earth, causing interference phenomena and signal loss in terrestrial equipment.
The second zone is the chromosphere, which has a thickness ranging from 6,000 to 14,000 kilometres and is composed mainly of hydrogen, with a very low density. The temperature in this zone varies between 10,000 °C and 36,000 °C.
Photosphere
The photosphere is a region formed by metals in a gaseous state together with helium and hydrogen. It is about 400 kilometres thick and has an average temperature of 6,000 °C. It is precisely in this layer that solar flares take place, reaching heights of up to 40,000 km.
If you have ever had the beautiful experience of observing the northern lights or southern lights, you should know that these solar flares are responsible for this phenomenon.
Between the photosphere and the core there are two other important areas. The first is a zone called convective, in which energy is transported from the interior of the star to the photosphere by a convection mechanism. The second layer is called radioactive, since the energy is transported by radiation.
Core
The core has a diameter of 600,000 kilometres and is the source of all the Sun's energy, since it is where nuclear fusion processes take place, under the appropriate conditions of pressure and temperature.
Curiosities of the sun
Do you want to know more about this star? Here are some interesting facts:
The sun has a gigantic diameter. It measures approximately 109 times that of the Earth. To give you an idea, if the sun were the size of a door, the Earth would be the size of a coin.