Our sun is what astronomers call a mainstream or main sequence star—essentially, it’s an average star, one that sits in the middle of the spectrum of what a star can be. It is not too huge, and it is not too hot (relative to other stars, that is), and at the end of its long life several billian years from now, it will expand and become a red giant instead of going supernova. It will eject its outer layers—which will seed the possibility of other planets billions of years down the line—and then compress into a tiny white dwarf.
The Sunday Letter #16: Stargazing
The Sunday Letter #16: Stargazing
The Sunday Letter #16: Stargazing
Our sun is what astronomers call a mainstream or main sequence star—essentially, it’s an average star, one that sits in the middle of the spectrum of what a star can be. It is not too huge, and it is not too hot (relative to other stars, that is), and at the end of its long life several billian years from now, it will expand and become a red giant instead of going supernova. It will eject its outer layers—which will seed the possibility of other planets billions of years down the line—and then compress into a tiny white dwarf.