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Astronomy & Space vocabulary · Solar System & Planets

Sun

Meaning in astronomy & space, with examples

/sʌn/nounCore term

In astronomy & space, Sun means: The star at the centre of our solar system. Its gravity holds the planets in their orbits, and its light and heat make life on Earth possible.

In Turkish: Güneş

How it is used

Written with a capital S in astronomy when it means our own star, usually with 'the'. Astronomers call it a yellow dwarf or a G-type main-sequence star. The adjective is 'solar', as in solar energy, solar flare and solar eclipse.

Example sentences

  1. Light from the Sun takes about eight minutes to reach Earth.

  2. Never look at the Sun through a telescope without a proper solar filter.

Common collocations

  • the Sun's surface
  • orbit the Sun
  • observe the Sun safely
  • solar activity
  • starA huge ball of hot gas, mainly hydrogen and helium, that produces light and heat through nuclear reactions in its core. The Sun is the nearest star to Earth.
  • solar systemThe Sun and everything that orbits it: eight planets and their moons, dwarf planets, asteroids, comets, dust and gas.
  • solar windA constant stream of charged particles flowing out from the Sun into space at hundreds of kilometres per second.
  • nuclear fusionA reaction in which light atomic nuclei, such as hydrogen, join to form heavier ones, such as helium, releasing a huge amount of energy. It powers the Sun and other stars.
  • eclipseAn event in which one body in space blocks the light of another, for example when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, or Earth's shadow falls on the Moon.

More terms: Solar System & Planets

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