How far is the sun from the earth and how we are all lit up and how come the space is black around the Sun?

[ohsheeT]

Wouldn't you think everything should be lit up

[SueShe]

The girls here have made a good job answering part of your question while the guy, well, took the easy solution and did not really answer anything.

As to the why the outer space is black even though it should be lit up by the sun, the answer is actually simple.

A very simple and comprehensible answer is that space appears black because it is a near-perfect vacuum containing vast empty stretches of nothingness, leaving no particles to scatter light to our eyes. Light (photons) is only visible when it bounces off matter and enters our eyes. Because space is a near vacuum, there is no air or dust to scatter light as there is in Earth's atmosphere. The light travels in a straight line from its source, so looking away from a star yields the pure black of an empty void.

Because the earth is surrounded by atmoshphere, the light is reflected on the atmosphere and that is why we can see a bright light.

[_Jenny_]

@SueShe kudos Sue, great reply 💯

[SueShe]

@_Jenny_ Thanks

[_Jenny_]

@SueShe you’re very welcome

[MrChinaski]

Or another way of saying it... There's a lot of space in... space.

[SueShe]

@MrChinaski not only in space.

Did you know that if you would "squeeze" all the atoms of the earth for them to touch each other, the earth would be about the size of a soccer ball but... weigh the same as it actualy does?

[MrChinaski]

Well, no I did not know the numbers. But yes I have a degree in physics.

Thanks for sharing. 😊

I thought your explanation above was excellent. The only point I would have added is that inverse square laws overwhelm everything eventually.

[SueShe]

@MrChinaski True but I did not want to make it a physics textbook. Most people here on GaG have already a hard time enough grasping simple math without the use of an abacus or pocket calculator ☺️

[MrChinaski]

@SueShe I have noticed. And then they get angry at you for not recognising their immense intellect. Some sort of chest thumping ritual.

[ohsheeT]

Now this make sense even tho I thought particles and matter were everywhere in space

[SueShe]

Thanks Mr. Ohsee for the MHO

[ohsheeT]

Thank you for the great answer

[Abbycado]

93 million miles.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/How-Far-Is-the-Sun-from-Earth

[MrChinaski]

There was actually a philosophical argument about this at one point that ran along the lines of: IF the universe always was static and stars had always shone THEN surely everything would be bright HENCE the universe is not static and eternal. I mean, it happened to give the correct answer that the universe has only been around for a finite time, but the argument is very partial physics.

[AngryCarl3]

I mean you can't light up space because there's nothing there to reflect the light. Conversely, the Moon does reflect light, which is why it's bright even at night.

[ohsheeT]

But there are other planet further out then is they are still dark. The moon is still dark

[AngryCarl3]

The average distance from the Earth to the Sun is about 93 million miles. Light from the Sun takes more than 8 minutes to reach the Earth.

[ohsheeT]

You would think the sun would light up something else beside earth

[AngryCarl3]

Yes other planets do reflect light from the sun but they are so distant that we only see them as tiny points of light.

[ohsheeT]

Kinda makes sense but if the sun is that far away
And we are getting light from its rays reflecting off of particles and matter on Earth isn't space filled with particles and matter

[AngryCarl3]

No, space is virtually a vacuum.

[MrChinaski]

@ohsheeT 'You would think the sun would light up something else beside earth' ... errr.. you have seen the moon, right?

[AngryCarl3]

@ohsheeT Thanks for MHO!

[HelpfulWoman_]

Men think the sun is some generous light source when it is clearly just a cosmic hole punched in the fabric of heaven by male aggression, and the blackness is the world’s natural reaction to the unbearable glare of their egos.

[strateguy632]

a. now in June further than average. b. despite far, still the air spread the light as if from all sides. c. only if it reflects but space is empty so the light goes away.

[_Jenny_]

@ohsheeT Approximately 93 million miles away and it takes 8 minutes to reach the earth

[NathanDavis]

the space is not black around the sun...

[DryGermanGuy]

Do you have a planetarium in your city/state? Visit it.

[msc545]

The sun is 93 million miles from the Earth, approximately.

[purplepoppy]

It is lit up, that's why we see the sun as yellow

[Nikki1989]

93 million miles.

[jahaims]

Google it