The Sun is Going to Die, This is What Happens next
In a few billion years, our sun is going to turn into a massive red giant. What does that mean for us, and for our solar system? Could Explosions on the Sun Harm Earth? ****** Subscribe! ****** Read More: Dying Star Offers Glimpse of Earth's Doomsday in 5B Years ****** "L2 Puppis is a dying star that once resembled our sun and it is showing us the stellar inferno that lies in store for our planet." Red Giant Stars: Facts, Definition & the Future of the Sun ****** "A red giant star is a dying star in the last stages of stellar evolution. In only a few billion years, our own sun will turn into a red giant star, expand and engulf the inner planets, possibly even Earth." Life cycles of stars ****** "During most of a star's lifetime, hydrogen nuclei fuse together to form helium nuclei. As the star runs out of hydrogen, other fusion reactions take place forming the nuclei of other elements. Heavier elements than hydrogen and helium (up to iron) are formed. Elements heavier than iron are formed in supernovas." ____________________ Seeker inspires us to see the world through the lens of science and evokes a sense of curiosity, optimism and adventure. Visit the Seeker website ****** Subscribe now! ****** Seeker on Twitter ****** Seeker on Facebook ****** Space Crafts on Facebook ****** Seeker ******
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The Sun is the most important star in our galaxy, and at some point, it’s going to
die.
When that happens, it’ll turn into a red giant, getting so big it’ll swallow Mars,
Mercury, and quite possibly vaporize our own planet.
Don’t panic yet, we’ve got a billion years to prepare before the big red comes.
Stars have a life cycle just like us: they are born, they live, and then they die.During
their lives, stars need to have a strong core, one that can fuse hydrogen into helium to
make nuclear fusion.
Stars will work their cores for billions of years.
But eventually, they’ll run out of hydrogen for their fusion process.
When that happens, the star can't hold up against gravity and its core will start to
collapse.
The core will get smaller and denser, while its outer shell expands and cools, giving
a distinctive red hue.
The combination of “cooling” and “expanding” is where the name red giant comes from.
Red giants are YUGE, reaching sizes of 100 million to 1 billion kilometers in diameter,
or 62 million to 621 million miles.
That’s nearly 1,000 times the size of the sun.
So when our sun turns into a red giant, life as we know it will cease to exist.
But there is an upside to this.
When stars morph into red giants, they change their habitable zone.
The habitable zone is a region with the right conditions for life.
So as the Sun gets larger and redder, it’s warmth will extend to the outer reaches of
our solar system.
Making it possible for life to begin on a whole new planet.
