• Question: how hot is the sun

    Asked by Georgia Stimpson to Heather, Helen, Hugh, Jane, Julian on 12 Nov 2014. This question was also asked by mad.melissa.
    • Photo: Julian Onions

      Julian Onions answered on 12 Nov 2014:

      At the surface around 5800C in the centre, more like 15,000,000 C
      Too hot to handle at either end!

    • Photo: Hugh Osborn

      Hugh Osborn answered on 12 Nov 2014:

      *Really* hot. It’s surface is 6000 degrees! That’s hot enough to melt any metal we have ever made.

      But that is the coldest part of the Sun. As you go deeper, the temperature keeps rising until, in the centre, you hit 15 million degrees! Thats hot enough to fuse Hydrogen together and form Helium – the reaction that powers the sun.

    • Photo: Helen Johnson

      Helen Johnson answered on 12 Nov 2014:

      Yup, what Julian and Hugh said! Incredibly hot.
      Different types of star are different temperatures, you can see the differences if you look up at the stars on a clear night – some are redder and some bluer. The bluer ones are hottest, just like the hottest part of a candle flame is blueish. One star you might be able to see in the night sky is Sirius, which is very bright, blue, and about 10,000 degrees. Bellatrix (another Harry Potter star!) is even hotter at 20,000 degrees on the surface.

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