The Sun is the largest object in the solar system.

The Sun is the largest object in the solar system. It contains more than 99.8% of the total mass of the Solar System (Jupiter contains most of the rest).It is said that the Sun is an "ordinary" star. That's true there are many others similar to it. There are many more smaller stars than larger ones; the Sun is in the top 10% by mass. The median size of stars in our galaxy is probably less than half the mass of the Sun.The Sun is personified in many mythologies: the Greeks called it Helios and the Romans called it Sol.The Sun is, at present, about 70% hydrogen and 28% helium by mass everything else ("metals") amounts to less than 2%. This changes slowly over time as the Sun converts hydrogen to helium in its core.The outer layers of the Sun exhibit differential rotation: at the equator the surface rotates once every 25.4 days; near the poles it's as much as 36 days. This odd behavior is due to the fact that the Sun is not a solid body like the Earth. Similar effects are seen in gas planets. The differential rotation extends considerably down into the interior of the Sun but the core of the Sun rotates as a solid body.




Conditions at the Sun's core (approximately the inner 25% of its radius) are extreme. The temperature is 15.6 million Kelvin and the pressure is 250 billion atmospheres. At the center of the core the Sun's density is more than 150 times that of water.The Sun's energy output (3.86e33 ergs/second or 386 billion billion megawatts) is produced by nuclear fusion reactions. Each second about 700,000,000 tons of hydrogen are converted to about 695,000,000 tons of helium and 5,000,000 tons (=3.86e33 ergs) of energy in the form of gamma rays. As it travels out toward the surface, the energy is continuously absorbed and re-emitted at lower and lower temperatures so that by the time it reaches the surface, it is primarily visible light. For the last 20% of the way to the surface the energy is carried more by convection than by radiation.




The surface of the Sun, called the photosphere, is a temperature of about 5800 K. Sunspots are "cool" regions, only 3800 K (they look dark only by comparison with the surrounding regions). Sunspots can be very large, as much as 50,000 km in diameter. Sunspots are caused by complicated and not very well understood interactions with the Sun's magnetic field.A small region known as the chromosphere lies above the photosphere.The highly rarefied region above the chromosphere, called the corona, extends millions of kilometers into space but is visible only during a total solar eclipse. Temperatures in the corona are over 1,000,000 K.It just happens that the Moon and the Sun appear the same size in the sky as viewed from the Earth. And since the Moon orbits the Earth in approximately the same plane as the Earth's orbit around the Sun sometimes the Moon comes directly between the Earth and the Sun. This is called a solar eclipse; if the alignment is slightly imperfect then the Moon covers only part of the Sun's disk and the event is called a partial eclipse. When it lines up perfectly the entire solar disk is blocked and it is called a total eclipse of the Sun. Partial eclipses are visible over a wide area of the Earth but the region from which a total eclipse is visible, called the path of totality, is very narrow, just a few kilometers (though it is usually thousands of kilometers long).




Eclipses of the Sun happen once or twice a year. If you stay home, you're likely to see a partial eclipse several times per decade. But since the path of totality is so small it is very unlikely that it will cross your home. People often travel half way around the world just to see a total solar eclipse. To stand in the shadow of the Moon is an awesome experience. For a few precious minutes it gets dark in the middle of the day. The stars come out. The animals and birds think it's time to sleep. And you can see the solar corona. It is well worth a major journey.



The Sun's magnetic field is very strong (by terrestrial standards) and very complicated. Its magnetosphere (heliosphere) extends well beyond Pluto.
In addition to heat and light, the Sun also emits a low density stream of charged particles (most electrons and protons) known as the solar wind which propagates throughout the solar system at about 450 km/sec. The solar wind and the much higher energy particles ejected by solar flares can have dramatic effects on the Earth ranging from power line surges to radio interference to the beautiful aurora borealis.





Recent data from the spacecraft Ulysses show that during the minimum of the solar cycle the solar wind emanating from the polar regions flows at nearly double the rate, 750 kilometers per second, than it does at lower latitudes. The composition of the solar wind also appears to differ in the polar regions. During the solar maximum, however, the solar wind moves at an intermediate speed.
Further study of the solar wind will be done by the recently launched Wind, ACE and SOHO spacecraft from the dynamically stable vantage point directly between the Earth and the Sun about 1.6 million km from Earth.The solar wind has large effects on the tails of comets and even has measurable effects on the trajectories of spacecraft.Spectacular loops and prominences are often visible on the Sun's limb (left).The Sun's output is not entirely constant. Nor is the amount of sunspot activity. There was a period of very low sunspot activity in the latter half of the 17th century called the Maunder Minimum. It coincides with an abnormally cold period in northern Europe sometimes known as the Little Ice Age. Since the formation of the solar system the Sun's output has increased by about 40%.
The Sun is about 4.5 billion years old. Since its birth it has used up about half of the hydrogen in its core. It will continue to radiate "peacefully" for another 5 billion years or so (although its luminosity will approximately double in that time). But eventually it will run out of hydrogen fuel. It will then be forced into radical changes which, though commonplace by stellar standards, will result in the total destruction of the Earth (and probably the creation of a planetary nebula).



The Sun's satellites There are eight planets and a large number of smaller objects orbiting the Sun. (Exactly which bodies should be classified as planets and which as "smaller objects" has been the source of some controversy, but it is really a matter of definition. Pluto is no longer officially a planet.

Happy New Year 2009!

It' snowing outside. I wish it wasn't snowing. What can you do? Nature has to take it course. Nature never is predictable, such as life. Today is December 31, 2008 the last day of 2008. This year has been a very trying year for me. I would say at times a real test of faith for me. I have learned a lot this year about myself and those around me. I have made new acquaintances and have formed some really wonderful friendships. I have hope that the new year will bring good energy my way. I will get more spiritually inclined and more productive with my endeavors this year.

I also feel sad reflecting on the past and remembering those once here.


I think of my mother always. I wish she was here. I keep wondering if she was here if my life would be as it is now. My mother was my true inspiration. She was a splendid lady with loving her loving ways always knew what to say. When she walked into a room you felt her energy it was a very strong and warm energy that attracted people sort of magnetic. My mother she had a wonderful aura. She was truly a remarkable woman. I miss her so much.Words cannot describe these emotions. This new year I aspire to be the best person I can be!

What if we couldn't pray?

What if we weren't able to pray? What would life be like? We are all so busy that sometimes we forget or say we don't have time to pray. If we want God to have time for us, shouldn't we make time for God? We have so many requests to God. We get angry when God doesn't answer our prayer right away. Yet we don't make the time to pray. What if we suddenly saw that we weren't aloud to pray? What would happen then? Would we perhaps want to pray then. What good would it be then. It is like someone dying. You say to yourself I wish I would have done this and that but then it is to late. Don't wait for the right time to build your relationship with God. Build your relationship today. For tommorow is not promised. What you do today will effect your tommorows.

What is being done for the working people? We need a bailout too.

Sitting thinking about what to expect for 2009. Wondering will things get worse. Things are very difficult right now. It seems every time you put on the news all you hear about is how bad the economy is. We know that the economy right now is in a recession. You don't hear them talking about the working people and how they are surviving these hard times. They are only talking about helping these big companies through their financial crisis. They are talking about helping only the big companies. Now my thoughts are like this. if you are only helping the big companies what will happen to the small companies? If you don]t help the people trying to survive how will the money go around? You have to have money in order to spend money. Prices of everything are going up. It seems like everyone wants a bailout but the people who really need it and deserve it aren't getting the help needed. What are you hearing about the banks helping home owners? What are the banks doing? They received money but what are they doing with there bailout money? I just don't get it. Do you get it?

What is Hanukkah?

What is Hanukkah (or Chanukah)?

Hanukkah is not the Jewish version of Christmas.
Although it is celebrated the same time of year, Hanukkah commemorates the physical and spiritual victory of the Jews over the Greeks more than 2,000 years ago.


Hanukkah is also known as the:
Festival of Lights, since the flame in the Temple burned miraculously for eight days.
Feast of Dedication, since the Temple was rededicated after being desecrated.
Hanukkah is celebrated from 25 Kislev - 2 Tevet, according to the Jewish calendar, which is lunar, so it falls on different dates each year.

This year Hanukkah begins Thursday evening, December 21, 2000 and ends on Friday evening, December 29. Remember that in the Bible, the day begins at sundown.

How Hanukkah is celebrated:
Each evening at sundown, the Hanukkah menorah is lit. The menorah has 9 candles. The one in the middle (called the Shamash - or Servant Candle) is used to light all the others. The other eight (4 on each side, and a little lower than the Shamash) are for each of the eight days that the Temple flame miraculously burned. On the first night, only the far right candle is lit. The second night, two candles are lit starting at the far right. The third night, three candles, and so it goes until the eighth and final night when all eight candles are lit. They are lit for a half hour, during which we do no work, but instead we remember the work of God (His miracles and providence) and praise Him.

You know, the Servant Candle in the middle some may say reminds them of Christ, who is the light of the world, and from whom we receive light for our own lives. (John 1:4,8:12)

The lighting of the candles is accompanied by prayers, like:
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the Universe,Who has made us holy through your WordAnd has instructed us to kindle the Hanukkah light.


The Story of Hanukkah

The Story of Hanukkah took place in the land of Israel long, long ago. In fact, it happened more than two thousand one hundred and fifty years ago, even before Jesus was born.
Back then, Israel did not have its independence, but was controlled by part of the Greek empire, since Alexander the Great had conquered most of the known world. One of the Greek kings that followed after Alexander was the Syrian king, Antiochus. He was the ruler of Israel at that time.
Antiochus was a very proud king, and he wanted everyone in his kingdom to think and live the way he did. So he made laws forcing people to give up their own beliefs and practices and to do things his way. And many people did what he said.

He tried to make God's people, the Jews, stop following the Bible. He tried to make them disobey God. He wanted them to stop worshipping the true God. And if they did not do what he said, they were persecuted. Sometimes the faithful were even killed. Unfortunately, many of the Jewish people did what Antiochus said. Some were even happy to follow Antiochus, because they liked Greek culture more than they liked following God.
Antiochus was upset that not all the Jews were following him, so he got more and more harsh in his treatment of them. He even went to the Temple of God in Jerusalem and stole all of the gold and silver and everything else of value. Then on the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev, he set up a statue of the Greek god Zeus in the holy Temple, and sacrificed an unclean pig on the altar. Then he sent idols to all the cities in Israel and ordered the Jews to sacrifice pigs and worship the Greek gods.

Now there were some Jews who remained faithful to God. One of these was an old priest name Mattathias. He lived in the village of Modin with his five sons. They were grieved at what they saw happening to the Jewish people throughout Israel. Then one day, the Greeks came to Modin and set up an altar with Greek idols right in the center of their town!
The King's officer called to Mattathias and his five sons to come out and sacrifice to the false gods. But the righteous priest called out, "even if every one in every nation obeyed the command of King Antiochus, neither I nor my sons will disobey the God of our fathers nor turn from God's laws even one small bit!"

Then Mattathias took a sword and killed both the king's officer who was trying to make them disobey God, as well as a Jew who was about to blaspheme God and sacrifice to the idols. Mattathias tore down the altar and then called in a loud voice, "Whoever is for God, follow me!" And then he took his sons and their families and they fled to the hills. And many people followed him. Thousands of Jews wanted to remain faithful to God. So they left the comfort of home and went into the wilderness where they could keep God's commands. But the armies of King Antiochus tried to find them and kill them.

Now Mattathias was very old and about to die, so he appointed his son Judah as the commander of the new army that was forming in the hills. And God showed his favor to the faithful Jews by giving them victory over the armies of Antiochus.
Before battle, Judah had his men fast and pray to God. They repented of their sin and asked God to give them victory. But when they saw the armies of Antiochus, many of the men were afraid because they were so outnumbered. But Judah declared, "The victory does not depend upon the size of the army, but it comes from the strength of the God of Heaven. They come with great pride, but we fight for our faith. God will defeat them, do not be afraid!"
Time and time again, by the power of God, Judah and his small army came out of the hills and defeated the great armies of Antiochus. In fact, Judah was so successful that he was given a new name. He was called Maccabeus (which in Hebrew means "Hammer"), because in battle he was like a hammer pounding away at the enemy.

Filled with anger, Antiochus sent an even larger army against them, and in the miraculous, decisive battle at Bet Tzur, the Jewish forces emerged victorious once again. From there, they marched on to Jerusalem, where they liberated the city and reclaimed the Holy Temple. They cleared the Sanctuary of the idols, they rebuilt the altar, and they prepared to resume the Temple worship services. Finally, the Temple of God was back in the hands of the faithful.
After cleaning the Temple, they looked for the pure, sacred olive oil to light the eternal flame that always burns in the house of God. To their dismay, only one small bottle of the special, holy oil could be found. It was enough oil to light the flame for just one day. And they knew it would take at least seven days for more of the holy oil to be prepared.
Undaunted, in joy and thanksgiving, they lit the flame and rededicated the Holy Temple on the 25th day of Kislev (exactly 4 years after Antiochus committed his blasphemous sacrilege). Each morning they expected to wake and find that the oil had burned out, but miraculously, each day the flame was still burning brightly. For eight days the oil burned until the high priest could finally consecrate more.

God's people again rejoiced and worshipped him for his constant protection and provision for them while they fought for truth and righteousness.

And that is why we celebrate Hanukkah. It reminds us of God's wonderful miracles on our behalf. It reminds us of God's protection throughout our lives. It reminds us to remain true to God even when the world around us tries to force us into a different mold. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."
(Romans 12:1-2)

The lights of Hanukkah remind us that as followers of Jesus Christ, we are the light of the world. So we should do as Jesus told us: "let your light shine before others so that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
(Matthews 5:14-16)

The Holidays Are Near!

Can you believe Christmas is almost here? How fast it seems. This year like every year not ready for Christmas. It feels like this year is more difficult for some reason. Thinking about all the things going on in this world. One thing for sure life is very precious perhaps even more precious than before. Time is precious perhaps more than before as well. Remind yourself of how precious life really is!