What happens if the sun goes out. What will happen if the Sun goes out: an apocalypse or a new life? What happens if the sun explodes


08.11.2016 19:08 2181

What happens if the sun goes out.

What does the sun mean to us? It warms us with its warmth, gives us light and energy. Without the sun, we would never know what a day is, it would simply not exist. And if for a moment imagine that the sun suddenly goes out? What will happen then? We are so accustomed to knowing that the sun always shines that it is very difficult for us to imagine that one day this may not be. However, this idea is not as fantastic as it might seem.

If one day it so happens that the sun really ceases to shine, then eternal night will come, moreover, without moonlight, since the moon does not shine by itself, but only reflects the sunlight. Then winter will come, also eternal, and on the whole planet the earth at once. Temperatures will drop to around minus 150 degrees Celsius and stay that way forever.

Life in such conditions is practically not real. Solar energy is central to the origin and maintenance of life on earth. It starts many processes occurring on our planet, vital for all living organisms. Without it, life on earth cannot exist for a long time, and even more so, it cannot be born. Therefore, immediately after the cessation of the energy of the sun on the surface of the earth, it (the earth) will begin to freeze gradually. According to scientists, within 45 days the planet will be completely covered with a thick layer of ice.

The land will freeze first, especially areas far from water sources - for example, deserts. The plants will die within a few days. The seas and oceans will be the last refuge of solar energy on the freezing earth. The temperature in the ocean, even at a depth of 35 meters, is about +15 degrees. As a result of the onset of a sharp cold, all bodies with a temperature above zero will rapidly cool down, including people.

About a month after the sun goes out, atmospheric gases crystallize. They will become hard. It will look like precipitation, something like frost. That is, it will become impossible to breathe oxygen (if there is still someone to breathe). In addition, many people will begin to die from hypothermia, especially in those countries and continents where there is never winter.

Such a catastrophe will undoubtedly force people to look for other sources of heat in order to survive. One of these sources may be clouds, which for some time will not allow the earth to cool. But the clouds will also disappear after a short time, because the water will no longer evaporate due to the lack of heat. Perhaps people will start burning the forest to heat the air and thereby cause moisture to evaporate. Minerals and nuclear fuel can also serve as energy sources.

But the main problem is that humanity will lose the main element necessary to sustain life - oxygen, which was produced by plants. We will have to create an artificial environment for their cultivation. For a certain number of people, salvation will be possible if they fly into space. However, modern technology will not allow them to stay there for very long, and space will become their last refuge.

In general, from the foregoing, we can conclude that if the sun goes out, life on our planet will stop very quickly. But still, you should not panic. According to the calculations of modern astronomers, the sun will shine to the delight of people for about 5 billion more years, and this, as you yourself understand, is a very, very long period of time.


The glow of the sun is caused by the intense combustion of various substances, primarily hydrogen and helium. The combustion temperature is so high that the reaction proceeds like a thermonuclear one, due to which the sun ...

The glow of the sun is caused by the intense combustion of various substances, primarily hydrogen and helium. The combustion temperature is so high that the reaction proceeds like a thermonuclear one, thanks to which the sun is able to heat the Earth at such a considerable distance.

Why does the sun have to go out?

The sun is a very small star, there are luminaries thousands and tens of thousands times larger. Initially, all stars shine thanks to the thermonuclear reaction of hydrogen nuclei, which at the same time turns into heavier substances: helium, oxygen, iron and even gold.

Under the influence of high temperature and pressure, these substances also begin to participate in the emission of light by the sun. Due to their high atomic mass and high amount of energy, the sun begins to cool as it grows in size. But at a certain stage, when there are too few light chemical elements, the temperature becomes insufficient for a thermonuclear reaction of heavier substances.

After that, the development of the star can go according to two scenarios. The heaviest stars, due to the high density of matter, the lack of buoyant forces from the extinct core, begin to shrink, turning into a black hole in a short time - an unusually dense area of ​​space.

Since the size of the sun is more than modest, its extinction will follow a different scenario. In 2 billion years, it will noticeably increase in size, swallowing Venus. Then, having reached the orbit of the Earth, and possibly also having swallowed our planet, the sun will begin to burn the remnants of matter. When even iron burns out, the giant ball will explode, completely losing its upper shell.

In place of the sun, only a dense and gradually cooling core will remain., consisting of very heavy metals - a white dwarf. Based on astronomical data and a large number of examples, this should happen in 4-5 billion years.

What happens if the sun explodes?

The fading of the sun will not be gradual - our luminary will spend his last days very violently and actively. According to a pessimistic forecast, the Earth will not catch the extinction of the sun at all - being absorbed by the star's chromosphere, our planet will turn into a high-energy plasma. If the surface of the sun does not reach the Earth, then up to 90% of the sky will be occupied by the luminary. The oceans will evaporate by that time, even the thin solid layer of the earth's crust - the lithosphere - will become liquid.

At the moment of the explosion, a powerful shock wave will eject the Earth and other planets remaining by that time from the solar system. Since there will be nothing to glow - only a small white dot of the former sun will be located in the sky - the temperature on Earth will quickly come, tending to absolute zero.

The usual change of day and night, surface lighting will also be completely absent. The shape of the Earth, which has undergone significant asymmetry after the explosion, will forever remain unchanged, since any tectonic activity in the mantle, the core will stop due to old age and low temperature. There could be trillions of such lone icy planets wandering the galaxy, deprived of a star due to a supernova explosion.

What will happen on Earth if the Sun stops shining?

Despite the fact that this option does not correspond to modern scientific data, such theories exist. Some scientists assume that our star will not become a red giant and will not explode. It is assumed that aging, the sun will shine weaker and weaker, subsequently going out altogether..

A momentary cessation of solar activity will not immediately turn the Earth into a block of ice - our planet also has an internal source of heat - a red-hot core. After 12 hours, it will become noticeable that climate change is taking place. In areas with a sharply continental climate, 0°C will be reached. The oceans and coastal areas will cool the longest - water is an excellent heat accumulator - up to a week.

The lack of sunlight will cause all the plants on the planet, up to the moment of their freezing, to switch to the absorption of oxygen, which will cause its deficiency. Due to the uneven cooling of the planet, hurricane-force winds of the type that blow in Antarctica will begin on the surface - up to 300 kilometers per hour.

A month later, the entire surface of the ocean will freeze, except for the deepest depressions. Fully uniform temperature will be reached after six months. By that time, all gases except hydrogen will turn into ice and life will be possible only in ultra-deep mines.

When exactly will the sun go out?

When will the sun go out? The answer to this question was obtained with the help of modern technologies and a variety of express methods. Everything in the universe has a beginning and an end. Not only plants, animals and people die, but also stars and planets, although their lifespan differs from that of the earth's flora and fauna.

Mankind has always feared the end of the world. Many scientists have tried to figure out when this will happen by linking Armageddon to the demise of the sun, but when exactly this will happen is unknown. Today, like many years ago, scientists all over the world are wondering that when the Sun goes out and humanity finds itself in this passion, will it be able to live without a luminary on Earth.

How can the sun die?

So far, there is no particular cause for concern, since this will not happen soon. Neither this nor the next generation will see the outcome and will not know why it happened. Perhaps the death of the Sun will become a new stage in the evolution of mankind, as it will force people to cosmic nomadism. Only sports and good physical training will help them in this.

However, it is unpleasant to realize that this Sun can explode, the world will shatter into small pieces, and the trace of humanity on the planet will evaporate. There are many variations on how this Sun will cease to exist. How this can happen, no one knows. Our Sun can simply go out, turn into a nebula, be reborn and become a red giant, after which it will face the fate of a supernova, unable to emit sunlight. Or perhaps this Sun will simply explode and scatter throughout the cosmos.

Over time, the hydrogen contained in the solar core is completely converted into helium, as a result of which the core will heat up and condense, the star itself will increase in size, passing into the stage of a giant red star. There is a theory that hot gases will have to escape into space and move our planet away, which will prevent a catastrophe. According to scientists, this will happen in 5-6 billion years, it is for this period that the reserves of the yellow star will last. The red giant stage lasts not so long, about a hundred million years. After that, the light can simply go out.

By this time, the Earth will be completely uninhabitable. Neither sports nor the high adaptability of a person to changing environmental conditions will help here. The tremendous energy of the revived star will burn the entire atmosphere and surface, which will become an absolute wasteland. After some time, people will have to move to live underground, so as not to burn out at a temperature of 70 ° C. It will be necessary to find a planet in another galaxy and go there, because due to the increased temperature, the rate of decomposition of carbon dioxide will increase, which will allow plants to disappear, without which the existence of people is impossible. Water will evaporate under the increased solar radiation, and the atmosphere will dissipate.

After some time, it is likely that the star will swallow the planets nearby, including the Earth. If it is not affected, then it will subsequently simply move away, and left without attraction, it will leave the Milky Way and begin to wander. Unfortunately, people of this generation will never know what the outcome of this story will be.

After the red stage, this Sun will begin to pulsate intensely, its atmosphere will break out into the Universe, in place of a colossal bright star, a small one will appear, similar in composition to a diamond, which will soon completely cool down, becoming a black dwarf.

If you believe the second theory, then this Sun will simply go out. Each star during its existence evolves from a nebula to a protostar, which turns into a yellow dwarf, which is our luminary. After that, there are two possible events: the star goes out, turning into a blue dwarf, gradually becoming a nebula again. Or he is reborn into a red giant with even more energy. In both cases, for the Earth, such an outcome can be deplorable.

How long will the earth live?

According to scientists, the Sun is slowly but surely approaching the "noon" of its life. Its age, according to computer calculations, is about 5 billion years. The total lifetime of a star is about 10 billion years. If the luminary becomes a blue or white dwarf, a dead star, then it simply cannot give our planet sufficient heat and energy, life will cease to exist not immediately, but gradually.

For some more time the Sun will "burn", but this light will be a phenomenon of gradual cooling. The planet will not instantly be covered with an ice crust, a person will notice this phenomenon only after 8 minutes, and the energy that is stored at the bottom of the oceans will give off heat for some time, it will support life on Earth. The global temperature will drop by about 20°C. Having reached zero soon, it will drop even more, so that in a year it will be -40 ... -50 ° C on Earth, permafrost will set in, only the simplest microorganisms, but not people, can survive in such conditions.

If the Sun goes out, the Earth will be in outer space, the day will cease to change night, the Moon will disappear from the sky, and with it the ebb and flow, a series of earthquakes will pass on the surface of the planet. Photosynthesis will stop, the plants will disappear, respectively, the production of oxygen will stop. The earthlings will still have enough air supply for some time, but this resource will already be limited. For heating, people everywhere will use geothermal sources, as is now practiced in Iceland.

Sun explosion theory

There is a theory of the explosion of the Sun. Many scientists dispute it, saying that the mass of the star is too small for such an outcome of events. Others, on the contrary, support the founders of the version, adding other details. If the Sun explodes, then in time it will be about 6 thousand years. The theory arose from the fact that over the past two decades, the temperature of the solar core has doubled. If this trend continues, the luminary will explode like glass before it goes out. It can spread throughout the universe. After the explosion, a neutron star or black hole is formed. Some experts fear an artificial explosion, when external bodies will cause the destruction of the star at any moment. However, there is no adequate reason to worry about this.

What happens if the sun goes out? No one can give an exact answer to this question, but this will certainly mean the end of the blue planet. But not necessarily the end of humanity, as most people choose sports, so they can easily adapt to any conditions. It is impossible to accurately answer the question of how many people will die as a result of the death of a fireball, and how many will be helped by sports and the desire to live. It is difficult to predict the future exactly, but based on current knowledge of physics, the death of a star will be just that - it will simply cool down.

What happens if the sun's rays go out? No one can accurately answer this question, there are only assumptions: perhaps the world will shatter into millions of small fragments, or maybe nothing will happen to the Earth, and the sports spirit and endurance of people will be able to overcome all obstacles. Or maybe sports on the planet and the desire of mankind to exist here will not be able to overcome and overcome world cataclysms.

What will happen to the Earth if the Sun goes out?

As scientists suggest, in 5 billion years the only star in the solar system will go out. What happens if the sun goes out?

Why the Sun can go out or explode

For the Sun to explode, one condition is necessary - the hydrogen in its composition must turn into helium. But this is not an explosion in the truest sense. Astronomers mean by this phenomenon a decrease in temperature and a simultaneous increase in size. Literally, quasars and entire star clusters can explode.

From the course of physics it is known that with a decrease in temperature, the volume of most bodies decreases. But for the Sun and other stars, this is not the case. Due to the forces of attraction, these objects must be compressed. At the same time, their density increases so much that thermonuclear reactions begin to occur. From hydrogen, helium is formed, and then most of the heavier elements listed in the periodic table.

On the surface of the Sun visible from Earth, the temperature fluctuates around 6,000°C. Stars with such indicators belong to the yellow spectral class. The temperature in the inner layers of the star is about 17 million degrees. Due to this, the celestial body should increase in size.

Dynamic equilibrium sets in when gravitational contraction is compensated by thermal expansion. Nuclear reactions proceed spontaneously, therefore the given temperature data are averaged. We perceive temperature differences in different parts of the surface as dark spots that determine solar activity, including magnetic activity.

Approximately half of the time of evolution of our luminary has passed. To date, solar reserves of hydrogen have decreased by 40% from the original. The burning of this gas leads to a decrease in the mass of the Sun. And this, in turn, to a decrease in the value of the gravitational forces that compress it. The star begins to increase in size, the probability of thermonuclear reactions decreases, the temperature decreases. This is how red giants and supergiants appear. Our luminary is an ordinary star. The same fate awaits him, but it will not be able to go out completely.

What awaits us

It is wrong to say that if the Sun goes out, it will cease to be a source of heat and light. But his physical characteristics will change. When the Sun explodes, it will not shatter into pieces like shell fragments, but will move into another class of stars and turn into a red giant.

When the Sun goes out, its size will increase so much that the radius of the star will exceed the radius of the orbit of Venus. Mercury and Venus will "fall" on it and be swallowed up by it. In how many years this will happen, it is not known exactly. Can the sun swallow our planet? According to scientists, it will remain in its orbit, but how life on Earth will change remains a mystery.

Our star is a source of heat and light. If the Sun goes out, it can be compared to a stove that shines and heats weaker, but is located closer to us.

In 5 billion years the sun will go out. But over a long period of time, life on our planet will evolve, adapting to changing conditions. But for life in today's understanding, the conditions in which it originated are necessary.

There is a hypothesis according to which the Milky Way, which includes our planetary system, will be absorbed by the nearest neighbor, the Andromeda Nebula. Today, both galaxies are approaching at a speed of 120 km/s. Computer modeling has shown that due to the increasing gravitational interaction, the change in the structure of the Milky Way will begin in 2 billion years, i.e. 3 billion years before the Sun goes out. And after 5 billion years, both spiral galaxies form one new ellipsoid.

Astronomy is developing at a rapid pace. It is likely that in the near future there will be new hypotheses describing the prospects of our star and what will happen to the Earth if the Sun goes out.

The mass of the sun is about 333,000 times that of our planet and produces the same amount of energy as 100 billion hydrogen bombs every second. The giant mass makes this star the dominant force of gravity in the entire solar system, firmly fixing all eight planets in their orbits. At the same time, the energy of the sun heats the Earth to the extent necessary for the catalyst of life to appear - water. But what will happen if the sun suddenly takes and disappears? Many people cannot even imagine such a situation. However, the problem posed is not as stupid as it seems at first glance. At least, Albert Einstein himself did not neglect this thought experiment - well, based on his calculations, we will try to tell you what will actually happen to the Earth if a star suddenly goes out.

gravity

Before Einstein asked the question, scientists believed that gravity changed instantly. If this were indeed the case, then the disappearance of the Sun would instantly send all eight planets on an endless journey through the dark depths of the galaxy. But Einstein proved that the speed of light and the speed of gravity propagate at the same time - which means we will enjoy ordinary life for another eight minutes before we realize the disappearance of the Sun.

Eternal night


The sun may simply go out. In this case, humanity will not remain in complete darkness, on a planet filled with desperate madmen. The stars will still shine, the factories will still work, and people, quite possibly, will not start lighting the fires of the Inquisition for another ten years. But photosynthesis will stop. Most plants will die within a few days - but that's not what should worry us the most. The average temperature of the Earth will fall to -17 degrees Celsius in a week. By the end of the first year, our planet will begin to experience a new ice age.

remnants of life


Of course, most of the life on Earth will cease to exist. In less than a month, almost all plants will die. Large trees will be able to hold out for several more years, as they have large reserves of nutritious sucrose. But, nothing will threaten some microorganisms - so, formally, life on Earth will be preserved.

human survival


But what will happen to our species? Professor of astronomy Eric Blackman is sure that we can easily survive without the Sun. This will happen thanks to volcanic heat, which can be used both for heating homes and for industrial purposes. It will be best to live in Iceland: people here are already heating their houses with geothermal energy.

Endless journey


But worst of all, the absence of the Sun will rip our planet off its leash and send it on a long, long journey. The planet will rush in search of adventure - and, most likely, will find them with ease. Unfortunately, this will not end well for us: the slightest collision with another object will cause huge destruction. But there is a more positive scenario: if the planet is carried towards the Milky Way, then the Earth may well find a new star for itself and enter a new orbit. In such an incredibly unlikely event, the people who have flown will become the first astronauts to overcome such a significant distance.

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It is impossible to turn off the Sun at the snap of a finger. It also can't just disappear. Nevertheless, scientists know exactly what will happen to the Earth and its inhabitants if the Sun goes out.

We are in website decided to talk about the main events that will follow. And at the end you will find the answer to the question of what really awaits the Sun and our planet in billions of years.

8 minutes 20 seconds

The astronauts of the International Space Station will understand that something is wrong with the Sun, in the first place. But even they will not know about it until 8 minutes 20 seconds later. This is how much light travels from the Sun to the Earth.

After the sun goes out, the entire planet will be at night. And people won't be able to see the moon. The thing is that by itself the satellite of the Earth does not produce light. It only reflects the sun's rays. This means that without them we will not see the Moon, as well as other space objects visible due to reflected light.

planet temperature

After that, the Earth begins to cool rapidly, as is usually the case with a hemisphere where night reigns.

It is estimated that in a week the average surface temperature of the planet will drop below -20 ° C. For a year - somewhere up to -73 ° С. In the end, the temperature will drop to -240 ° C and will remain at this level.

Life in the Earth

Plants will be hit first. They cannot exist without photosynthesis, which, in turn, is impossible without sunlight. All small plants will die within a few weeks. But large trees can last longer - several years. This is possible due to the large supply of glucose that plants produce during photosynthesis and the slow metabolism.

The food chain will be broken, which will lead to the rapid extinction of wild animals. The last to die are the scavengers.

People can escape by hiding in the depths of the oceans or underground, where the heat will last the longest. After all, the core of the Earth will still be hot. Perhaps humanity will even learn to grow plants and animals in such conditions. Energy could be obtained from nuclear reactors and geothermal sources.

But even if humanity fails to survive, individual microorganisms will continue to exist even in the most adverse conditions. Therefore, formally, life on Earth will be preserved.

gravity

If the Sun disappears, then there will be nothing to keep the Earth and other planets in their orbits. As a result, they will all go beyond the solar system. and will fly until they fall under the gravity of something larger than themselves. Or until they collide with any large space object that is capable of destroying them.

pros

Despite the fact that such an event has many destructive or even fatal consequences for humanity, It also has some positive aspects:

  • without the Sun, satellite communications would work better;
  • without the Sun ground-based observatories

Everyone understands that life on planet Earth cannot be imagined without the main source of light shining in the sky - the Sun. It is thanks to him that the planets rotate on their axis. It is thanks to the Sun that life appeared on Earth.

Since ancient times, people have been thinking about the question: what will happen if the Sun goes out? Scientists put forward their versions, filmmakers repeatedly make films on this topic. What will happen to humanity, and indeed to the whole living world on Earth?

Why can the sun go out?

The power of radiation that falls from the Sun to the Earth is equal to 170 trillion kW. In addition, another 2 billion times more energy is dissipated into space. The theory of relativity says: the expenditure of energy affects the loss of mass.

The Sun loses 240 million tons of weight every minute. Scientists have calculated that the life span of the Sun is 10 billion years.

So how much time is left? Scientists suggest that exactly half of the allotted time, that is, 5 billion years.

What then? And if the Sun goes out, what will happen to the Earth? There are many opinions and disputes regarding this global issue. Below are just a few of them.

Eternal darkness

If you turn off the light source in a completely isolated room, then complete darkness will come. What happens if the sun goes out? Same.

At first glance, this is not entirely dangerous for humanity. After all, people have invented other sources of light. But how long will they last? But the cessation of the flow of sunlight will adversely affect the plants. And in just a week they will all die. As a result, photosynthesis and the process of producing oxygen on Earth will stop.

Loss of gravity

The sun is a kind of magnet. Thanks to its attraction, the eight planets of the solar system do not move randomly, but strictly along the axes around the center. What happens if the sun suddenly goes out? All of them, having lost the force of gravity, will begin to randomly travel through the vast expanses of the galaxy.

For the Earth, this, most likely, can lead to tragic consequences. After all, a collision with even a small space object, not to mention another planet, can simply tear it apart. Does this mean that if the Sun goes out, the Earth will perish? But there are also optimists among scientists who argue that the earth can survive. But such an option is possible if it gets into the Milky Way, where it finds a new star and, accordingly, a new orbit.

Termination of life

As already noted, life cannot be imagined without sunlight and heat. So what happens if the Sun goes out? Plants are the first to suffer. They will literally disappear within the first week. Only large trees, thanks to the reserves of sucrose, will be able to exist for some time. Then, having lost the source of food, first herbivores will die, and then predators. In addition, the disappearance of plants will stop the production of oxygen, which will further accelerate the extinction of living organisms on Earth. The inhabitants of the deep ocean have the advantage. Firstly, they do not need light, because they are accustomed to constant darkness. Secondly, they are less dependent on oxygen, since they do not need to float to the surface, as most species of fish do.

But life on earth will not die completely. History knows cases of survival of some species (for example, cockroaches) even after the most global changes. Some microorganisms will continue to exist for many hundreds or even thousands of years. Perhaps in the future they will be the beginning of a new life on earth.

A hazy future for man

It has been proven time and again that people adapt to different conditions. What happens if the sun goes out? Having evolved, humanity has learned to create other sources of light. For a while, they will be enough.

In addition, you can use the energy of the earth, including volcanoes. Already, the inhabitants of Iceland use to heat their homes. Yes, and without food sources, a person can survive. First, because of its stamina. Secondly, thanks to the fact that he learned to create food himself.

As we know from history, the Earth has already experienced ice ages. But they do not go to any comparison with the one that will come after the sun goes out. According to the theory of scientists, literally in a week the temperature in all corners of the globe will drop to minus 17 degrees Celsius. In a year, it will drop to minus 40. Initially, the land will be covered with ice, especially those areas that are located far from the water.

Then the ice cap will cover all the seas and oceans. However, the ice will be in a sense a heater for water at depth, so the seas and oceans will completely turn into ice only after hundreds of thousands of years.

So is everything really so sad, humanity is doomed?

It is difficult to give a positive or negative answer to this question. What is certain is that life will change drastically. If the Earth is lucky not to collide with a cosmic body and it remains safe and sound, this does not mean that its inhabitants will survive. Plants and animals will eventually cease to exist. But what about people? They will have to adapt to new conditions: complete darkness, lack of natural food, constant cold. You can still get used to it. But due to the lack of oxygen in the air, the future of mankind is under threat. Only the creation of alternative sources will save it.

So what happens if the sun goes out? The entire solar system is undergoing dramatic changes. Only one thing pleases: they will come, most likely, only in 5 billion years.

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