Basic Solar Properties
Diameter (photosphere) 1,391,980 km
Mass 1.99 x 1033 g
Average Density 1.41 g/cm3
Luminosity 3.83 x 1033 erg/sec
Rotation Period 25 days (equator)
Surface Temperature 5,800 K (effective)
Spectral Class G2V
Apparent Visual Magnitude - 26.7
Absolute Visual Magnitude + 4.8
Mean Distance to Earth (1 AU) 149,597,892 km

Basic Solar Properties

Some basic solar properties are summarized in the table to the right. Some of the quantities given there such as spectral class will be defined in subsequent chapters, but we include the values here for a convenient reference.

The list in the right panel contains web links for solar information. Such continuously updated sites allow almost real-time monitoring of the Sun for anyone with internet access.