Here is a close up view
of the only star astronomers can see close up. It's name is
Sol. Sol which looks like a beautiful bright yellow and
red fireball, is not actually on fire. It is glowing
because nuclear reactions in its core, or center are busy
turning a gas called hydrogen into another gas called
helium. These nuclear reactions create a lot of heat which
makes the sun glow. Think of the metal inside a toaster,
which glows even though it is not on fire. In addition to
hydrogen and helium, the Sun, also contains carbon,
nitrogen, and small amounts of other gases.
This king of our Solar
System rules because compared to everything else, it is so
large. It contains about 98% of all the mass, or rocks,
dust, and gas in the Solar System. If the sun were hollow a
million Earths could fit inside.
The middle layer of the
Sun churns up and down in a circular motion deeper into the
Sun and than back out again. This creates a lot of neat
effects. Such as making the Sun into a giant magnet, as well
as causing dark cooler areas on the Suns surface known as
Sun Spots. This churning can also eject giant streams of gas
known as solar flares into the Sun's atmosphere.
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