Sun's Almost Perfectly Round Shape

[Karlis]

The sun is nearly the roundest object ever measured.

If scaled to the size of a beach ball, it would be so round that the difference between the widest and narrow diameters would be much less than the width of a human hair.

The sun rotates every 28 days, and because it doesn't have a solid surface, it should be slightly flattened. This tiny flattening has been studied with many instruments for almost 50 years to learn about the sun's rotation, especially the rotation below its surface, which we can't see directly.

Source

[jacobstiles]

Unless you find a way to deform the sun, or it's going to stay like that. How's that weird

[Karlis]

Unless you find a way to deform the sun, or it's going to stay like that. How's that weird

Regarding your question, jacobstiles:

"How's that weird"?

Answer:

Planets and stars rotate. Our sun rotates on its axis once every 28 days. Rotation causes a bulge at the equator. Scientists are perplexed, and are attempting to find an explanation as to why our sun does not bulge at its "equator".

As the article states:

The sun rotates every 28 days, and because it doesn't have a solid surface, it should be slightly flattened ...

[jacobstiles]

it's how nature works, who good does it do to human society, even natural society exploring why the sun is too stubborn to flatten out. Seriously?

[Nasty Gash]

it's how nature works, who good does it do to human society, even natural society exploring why the sun is too stubborn to flatten out. Seriously?

I was about to faceplant until I realized that no one could be so willingly ignorant as not to understand the value of knowledge, even knowledge about that which one has no interest.

Troll. Has to be.

[jacobstiles]

If by valuable knowledge you mean spending time and resource to find out why sun refused to flatten out, you're right, troll it has to be.

I would not object to investigation as such, if the world is living in peace and comfort. Not even comfort, just enough to keep people from suffering, enough to keep the resource distribution balanced.

This, is a complete waste of valuable time + capital. There are far more urgent things that needs attention than this, the sun will survive the neglect, people won't.

Although if you insist that fulfilling our selfish curiosity should be a top priority, then I guess you can support the cause as u wish, I have nothing more to say to you.

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Nasty Gash & jacobstiles, less of the bickering and name calling please. This is a site for civilised debate not childish tantrums and arguments.

Thank you.

[Nasty Gash]

Nasty Gash & jacobstiles, less of the bickering and name calling please. This is a site for civilised debate not childish tantrums and arguments.

Thank you.

Waspie_Dwarf:

I don't believe that either of us resorted to name-calling. Certainly jacobstiles did not. I did use "troll" so perhaps you are correct.

I also used "willfully ignorant" but that was not directed at jacobstiles or anyone else, obviously, since a few words later I explained that I felt his OP was not serious. jacobstiles answered my response with a reasoned, rational explanation of why he felt money and effort were being wasted. After reading his explanation, I realize that his OP was NOT a troll and for that I publicly apologize. I only wish that that explanation had been in his OP.

Thank you for your comments Waspie_Dwarf. In future, I shall endeavor to be more mindful of the sensitivities of the members of this forum.

I would not object to investigation as such, if the world is living in peace and comfort. Not even comfort, just enough to keep people from suffering, enough to keep the resource distribution balanced.

This, is a complete waste of valuable time + capital. There are far more urgent things that needs attention than this, the sun will survive the neglect, people won't.

jacobstiles:

I certainly agree with your first point! Far too much effort and resources are wasted on endeavors that do not advance, but rather divide, Humanity. However, if Humans were not to satisfy their curiosity, there would be no advances that would advance Humanity. What if early Humans were not curious about fire? Were not curious about what was to be found on the other side of the ocean? Where not curious about what they could do if they attached a few feathers and a sharp stone to a stick? Would the computer and the internet that you are using now have been possible had curious individuals been stopped because others felt their endeavors a waste? The fact that the sun does not bulge as would be expected is a puzzle. Solving this puzzle probably would not cost very much, relative to the cost of the desired balancing of resource distribution that you and I both desire. We don't know what might result from solving the puzzle. It might lead to a technology that would help achieve that goal. We won't know if we don't pursue an answer. At the very minimum, an answer would add Human understanding of the Universe and that is never bad.

[ozman]

I am sure the gravity pushing inward and nuclear fusion pressure pushing outward causes balance and perfection. If pressure is leaving from core outward and gravity is pushing hard on the outside then imperfections should get corrected automatically and a smooth balance should exist.

Look at white dwarfs and high gravity objects, i am prettys sure they are perfectly round.

[notoverrated]

this doesn't surprise me.

[woopypooky]

still not a 100% perfect circle.it shows you that God are not perfect

[ZaraKitty]

It's a huge ball of gas (paraphrasing btw) I see no reason for it to compress, do you know how hard it to to compress gas?!?!

[Likely Guy]

The sun is nearly the roundest object ever measured.

If scaled to the size of a beach ball, it would be so round that the difference between the widest and narrow diameters would be much less than the width of a human hair.

Yes. But if the Sun was the size of a beachball, the Earth would be the size of a pea. Then, how thick would a human hair be?

Or, at the other end of the scale, since the Sun is not a beachball, how wide would the human hair have to be? 1 km? 10 kms? 100 kms? ...and how big would the human be?

/i'm not expecting an answer to those questions, by the way. i know that a human hair is the 'constant'.

Edited August 20, 2012 by Likely Guy

[AmishHacker]

The Sun's size and mass make this discovery somewhat unsurprising. Much of the comparison is made with Jupiter's bulge, but Jupiter spins rapidly, is much smaller, and is less massive than the Sun. Its mass, by comparison, is 1.989x10³⁰ while Jupiter's mass is only 1.898x10²⁷ or less than 0.001 the mass of the Sun. I wonder if the Sun's nuclear fusion process has anything to do with balancing its shape.

To me, this discovery falls in line with similar discoveries about our own world, especially our place in the HZ. Its just, for lack of a better term, perfect. :-)

AmishHacker

Edited August 20, 2012 by AmishHacker

[The Mule]

I'm no rocket appliance, but I'm gonna go with ....if its gravitational force is enough to keep 9 (maybe) planets in orbit...maybe its gravity is strong enough to negate the spinning bulge.

But then again...Im just a mule and cant figure out how any of it affects my life. I for one would rather have the stumped scientists work on something like ending world hunger or curing cancer.

Edited August 20, 2012 by The Mule

[pallidin]

I'm no rocket appliance, but I'm gonna go with ....if its gravitational force is enough to keep 9 (maybe) planets in orbit...maybe its gravity is strong enough to negate the spinning bulge.

But then again...Im just a mule and cant figure out how any of it affects my life. I for one would rather have the stumped scientists work on something like ending world hunger or curing cancer.

Well, it would affect your life if the Sun has a sudden hernia.

[The Mule]

Well, it would affect your life if the Sun has a sudden hernia.

Well...true!

But what i meant was that the sun's gonna do whatever it pleases. If it decides to have a hernia or a hiccup, knowing how why and when isn't really gonna stop it from happening or save my muley hide.

[Nasty Gash]

I am sure the gravity pushing inward and nuclear fusion pressure pushing outward causes balance and perfection. If pressure is leaving from core outward and gravity is pushing hard on the outside then imperfections should get corrected automatically and a smooth balance should exist.

Look at white dwarfs and high gravity objects, i am prettys sure they are perfectly round.

You're assuming that the two forces are equal and that there are no other forces in play. This is not the case. The Sun's diameter is dependent upon the partial pressures of all its constituent gases (total pressure), the radiation pressure, its gravity and the centrifugal force imparted by its rotation. That explanation is a bit simplistic but serves for this discussion. Of those, gravity "pulls" toward the center while the others "push" away from the center. If the Sun were not rotating, only the total pressure, the radiation pressure and gravity would be factors and each of those would act equally in all directions with its own magnitude. That would result in a perfect sphere. The Sun's diameter is determined by how far from the center those forces are in equilibrium. However, the Sun's rotation imparts a centrifugal force which "pushes" away from the center and this force is greatest at the equator and that causes the expected bulge. Again, this is a little simplistic but serves the illustrate the dynamics.

Edited August 25, 2012 by Nasty Gash

[ArcticDaystar14]

Well then can someone give or email me a picture of what an actual perfectly round circle/sphere looks like? I can't be told a conclusion with little evidence? EmbryoRothstrikes