No problem. Betelgeuse has bloated out to more than 1, times the size of the Sun. This would consume the orbit of Mars and almost reach Jupiter. This red hypergiant star is thought to be 1, times the size of the Sun. This star would almost touch the orbit of Saturn if it were in our Solar System. We have written many articles about stars here on Universe Today. We have recorded several episodes of Astronomy Cast about stars.
Giant Molecular Clouds, or Nebulae, are enormous. They can span to even light years in diameter! Giant Molecular Clouds are big and cold collections of gas and dust.
They get so big that they eventually begin to collapse on themselves. When they do, magic happens; stars begin the birthing process. They start out as little baby protostars and turn into main sequence stars. Depending on the size of the star, the period of which thermal energy is created through the process of nuclear fusion can vary. However, for the life cycle of an average star, this can be roughly a few billion to 10 or even 15 billion years.
You are probably very familiar with nuclear fusion and may or may not even know it. Nuclear fusion is the process in which hydrogen atoms turn into helium. This occurs through a sequence called the proton-proton chain. Nuclear fusion relies on carbon, nitrogen and oxygen atoms to convert hydrogen into helium atoms. This process creates the output of Energy E through the conversion of one element to another, in this case, hydrogen to helium. The mass energy equivalence. Our Sun is an average sized star: there are smaller stars and larger stars, even up to times larger.
Many other solar systems have multiple suns, while ours just has one. Our Sun is , miles in diameter and 10, degrees Fahrenheit on the surface.
Other Sun Stuff! Make some sunspot cookies! Play Helios! Keep the sun shining bright! Where does the sun get all its energy? If you liked this, you may like: What Is a Supernova? All About the Sun. What Causes the Seasons?
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