How old is the Sun? What will happen when the Sun turns into a nebula?
The Sun will not turn into a nebula. But, the Sun was formed from a nebula over 4 billion years ago. A nebula is a cloud of dust and gas (often called "gust"). If enough of this dust and gas come together, a star can form inside a nebula.
The Sun seems very old. But it is only halfway through its life. In a very long time, the Sun will come to the end of its life. It will begin to change then.
The Sun will get much bigger. It will be a red giant star. The Sun will be so big that it will cover Mercury and Venus. The Earth will be too hot for any life to stay on the planet. So if humans are around then, they might have to camp out on Pluto for a little while.
At the very end of its life, the Sun is likely blow off some of its layers. It will then shrink a lot, becoming a cooler white dwarf star.
Submitted by Victor (age 14, Oregon, USA)
Submitted by Benjamin (age 9, Pennsylvania, USA)
(October 9, 1997)
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