1. The Sun Science vs. Mythology Sarah Bombrys

2. Sun Facts  The Sun is the closest star to Earth.  The Sun rotates once about every 27 days.  The Sun’s diameter is about 870,000 miles.  A million Earths could fit inside the Sun.  The Sun is 74% hydrogen, and 24% helium.  The core of the Sun is around 27 billion degrees Fahrenheit. (Facts about the Sun) (Space Facts)

3. Layers of The Sun Corona- outer most layer of the Sun’s atmosphere. Chromosphere-middle layer of the Sun. Photosphere- Gives off light and is made up of calcium vapor. Core- where hydrogen changes to helium (produces heat and light) Sunspots- areas of cooler gases Prominences- where gas arcs out from the Suns surface, supplying heat and energy. (Fusion Energy Education) (Layers of the Sun)

4. Interesting Sun Facts  The Suns magnetic polarity reverses every eleven years.  To match the energy of the Sun, it would take 100 billion tons of dynamite exploding every second  The gravity of the Sun is 28 times larger than Earths.  It takes eight minutes for light from the Sun to reach Earth. (29 Interesting Facts About… The Sun)

5. How The Sun Helps/Harms Without the Sun, nothing would be able to live on Earth. It provides us with light and heat so we don’t freeze to death, and so plants can grow. The light from the Sun can also be used to make solar energy. If in sunlight for too long, you can get sunburns, and possibly skin cancer or heatstroke. Heat waves and droughts can also be caused by the Sun.

6. Apollo and Helios  In Ancient Greece, both Apollo and Helios were thought to be the Sun God.  The Greeks believed that every day, the Sun god would drive the Sun Chariot across the sky, which was what caused Sunrise, daytime, and Sunset  In one myth, Helios let Phaethon, his son, drive the Sun Chariot for a day, but Phaethon lost control of the horses. Zeus, not wanting the chariot to get to close to Earth and cause damage, hit Phaethon with a lightning bolt, which killed him.  The Sun God was thought to be able to see everything that happens on Earth. In the myth of Persephone, Demeter, trying to find her daughter, asked Helios if he knew what happened to her. Helios was able to tell her that Hades had kidnapped her. (Greek Myths & Greek Mythology) (Apollo)