The sun. The queen star of our solar system, thanks to it we are all here today because it is responsible of illuminating and heating our planet. Well, NASA has discovered that it will also have an end, although we cannot imagine life without it (it would not be possible either), everything in the universe has its days numbered, but do not panic because we will not live to tell about it because there are still more than 5,000 million years until this happens! We are going to tell you everything that NASA has discovered below.
The sun… will it just go out?
We don’t know if you know this, but all stars have a life cycle. Right now, the king of our system is in mid-stage. What does this mean? It’s burning hydrogen in its core to produce energy, but there will come a time when that fuel runs out and it begins to transform.
Once that happens, it will become a “red giant,” which means it will grow so much that it will “eat” its closest planets, like Mercury and Venus, and, of course, Earth will also suffer this process.
It seems as if we were narrating a post-apocalyptic movie, but, even if our planet were not swallowed, temperatures would rise so much that the oceans would evaporate, and it would be impossible for humans to live on Earth.
So, once the Sun has destroyed everything in its path, it will release its outer layers and form a planetary nebula, leaving behind a small “white dwarf” (which will be the final product of this star), and, although it will no longer shine as before, it will continue to exist in the universe for billions of years more.
Why is it important to know this?
Although it may not seem important because none of us will live to see it and 5,000 million years is a long time, it gives us a perspective on what life is like for stars and how they also influence the planets that surround them. Remember, the Earth exists and so do we because the Sun, at the distance we are, it allowed life to develop with its characteristics, and that is why there is life on our planet and on others (for the moment) it has not been discovered.
Does it also affect other planets?
Of course, the Sun does not only affect Earth, as we have said, there will be planets that simply disappear, swallowed by the sun, and there will be planets, like Mars, that during the Red Giant era will be a warmer planet (and that is now a cold desert that is -81ºF!!). Even Jupiter and Saturn could change their composition and could become more habitable? Who knows if in millions of years life will emerge on these planets!
For us (current humans) this does not change anything, we will continue to know life as we know it today, but it is very important for astrologers and physicists to understand how the natural cycle of the universe is, where, as can be seen, everything has a beginning and an end. Knowing this should not alarm us, but rather teach us to value what we have now, and realize how lucky we are to simply exist (have you stopped to think how many coincidences had to occur for you to be reading this?). So, as Horace said, carpe diem, we won’t be here forever!