Why is the Sun Hot?

The Sun, which is a star, is mainly made up of the elements hydrogen and helium. In the core of

the Sun there is an activity generally called nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion, also known as

thermonuclear reaction for being promoted by

high temperature, in the Sun started around

five billion years ago and will continue to do

so for some seven billion more years. This

nuclear fusion activity – in which hydrogen

nuclei combine to form helium – makes the

Sun glow because nuclear fusion yields light

and heat energy. The Sun’s surface reaches

4,300-9000ºC while its core has a temperature

of about 15,000,000ºC. The Sun’s core is the hottest place in the solar system. Heat energy from

the Sun makes life forms – plants, animals, and humans –possible on Earth. Solar energy travels

to Earth by radiation. Without the Sun we will not live at all. But the hydrogen in the Sun’s core

is dwindling, causing the Sun to have a tendency to collapse in on itself. This introduces pressure

on the core. To resist the pressure, the rate at which nuclear reaction occurs increases. In effect the

Sun is getting hotter and brighter. In 3 billion years the Sun will be hot enough to boil Earth’s

oceans – and even melt the rocks; four billion years thereafter, the Sun will have run out of

hydrogen. By then the accumulated helium in the Sun’s core will become unstable and the core

will collapse because of its own weight. This will cause the core to heat up, allowing the Sun to

grow in size. The bloated Sun will then be called a red giant and its size could extend as far as the

orbits of Mercury, Venus, and Earth, possibly swallowing these planets in the process. The Sun in
the red giant phase will get rid of its outer layers and eventually settle down as a white dwarf star.

There is no nuclear fusion in a white dwarf star which is why the Sun in that stage can no longer

support life. Indeed, the Sun as the life-support of our planet will approach an end, but it is not

happening in the near future. By that time, mankind could have been long gone already or probably

survived to have moved on to some other heavenly body – somewhere in the far reaches of the

universe – that could support life like our Earth.

Study Help

1. Can you explain why the Sun is hot?

2. Can you describe the nuclear fusion process in the core of the Sun?

3. Will the Sun continue to supply heat and light forever? Why?

4. Is the Sun getting warmer and brighter?

5. After the red giant phase, what will happen to the Sun?