Sun = Star

 

Is it true or false that the Sun is a planet?

1. It’s false, of course. The sun is a star. But why? It consists of atoms, and so do planets. What is the difference?
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3. What makes a star, a star, is one crucial thing. That is, it can sustain nuclear fusion reactions in its core. 
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5. In space, when a lot of matter is present at one single spot, it compresses itself together since each particle is acting as a gravitational force on the other. 
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7. Gravity is what pulls the matter together and forms planets, or when a lot of matter is compressed, stars.

1.   What is the difference?
2. The difference is that a star has such an incredible pressure on its inside — due to the gravitational force — that atoms fuse. This fusion reaction (for example, hydrogen fusion to create helium) releases tons of energy in the process. 
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4. Instead of adding to the inward pressure, the energy realised during the nuclear fusion “counterattacks” the gravitational pressure by radiating energy outward:
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8. Nuclear fusion keeps the star alive by preventing it from collapsing into itself under immense gravitational pressure.
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10. Planets, on the other hand, don’t have enough mass to keep going or even start nuclear fusion in their core. (Which is for the best because I would want to live on a planet that can do that.)

Source

Victor Thierling

121k followers on Insta, @ObservethecosmosSun

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