The Sun, a colossal celestial body, dwarfs Earth in both size and mass. With a diameter approximately 109 times larger than Earth’s and a mass exceeding 330,000 times our planet’s, it dominates the solar system, accounting for nearly 99.8% of its total mass.

Aged at around 4.6 billion years, the Sun stands at the midpoint of its life cycle. Its core, a seething furnace, blazes at temperatures soaring up to 15 million degrees Celsius (27 million degrees Fahrenheit), while its luminosity emanates a staggering 3.8 × 10^26 watts of power.

This luminous behemoth exerts a gravitational pull over 28 times stronger than Earth’s, anchoring celestial bodies in its orbit. Yet, its magnetic influence extends far beyond the orbit of Pluto, with poles that undergo a reversal approximately every 11 years.

Despite being a cosmic furnace, it takes a modest 8 minutes and 20 seconds for its light to traverse the vast expanse and reach Earth, where it fuels our climate system, stirring winds, currents, and fostering life. Solar storms unleashed by the Sun can dazzle Earth’s skies with auroras, the mesmerizing Northern and Southern Lights, near the planet’s poles.