| Diameter | 1,391,000 km / 864,300 miles |
| Avg. distance from Earth | 149,597,890 km / 92,955,820 miles |
| Number of known planets | 8 regular planets, 5 dwarf planets |
| Time taken to turn on axis | 25 days, 9 hours |
| Surface gravity | 28 |
| Core temperature | 13,600,000 °C / 24,480,000 °F |
| Average surface temp. | 5,500 °C / 9,900 °F |
At the centre of the Solar System is a star. The Sun is a
huge ball of gas which provides light and heat to its planets. It contains
99% of all of the matter in the Solar System and, at 4.5 billion years old,
is about half way through its life. Without the Sun, life on Earth simply
wouldn't exist. The Sun is just one of millions of stars like it in the
Milky Way galaxy but is the closest star to Earth. The next closest star is
Proxima Centauri, nearly 268,000 times further away!
