A solar mass is equal to 1.99 x 1030 kg; a solar radius is equivalent to 700,000 km, and the Sun brightness is 3.8 x 1026 W. The Earth could consume between 1,500 and 40,000 Exajoules from the radiation the Sun emits, whereas the whole humanity consumption of one year rise to 600 Exajoules.
In the following table, you can see some examples of stars and their masses, sizes (radius), and brightness or luminosity.
Star | Mass | Radius | Distance
[light years] |
Luminosity or
brightness |
Alpha Centauri A | 1.1 M | 1.22 R | 4.3 | 1.52 L |
Alpha Centauri B | 0.907 M | 0.86 R | 4.3 | 0.5 L |
Proxima (Alpha Cen. C) | 0.122 M | 0.15 R | 4.24 | 0.0017 L |
Sirius | 2.06 M | 1.7 R | 8.6 | 25.4 L |
Aldebaran | 1.16 M | 44 R | 65.3 | 518 L |
Canopus | 8 M | 71 R | 310 | 10,700 L |
Antares | 12 M | 680 R | 550 | 97,700 L |
Rigel | 23 M | 79 R | 860 | 120,000 L |
In astronomy, this symbol represents the Sun
DID YOU KNOW THAT…
…if the light could travel at infinite speed or if the Universe were endless, the night sky would be crystal clear since we would see stars in every direction? However, as the Universe has a starting point, and the speed of light is finite, our sky looks dark.
Read more about “Olbers’ paradox.” on this link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olbers%27_paradox
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