How long can you be in the sun before you get burned?

Answer 1

It depends on how bright, dim or where the sun currently is during that period of time. As though i assume you mean direct contact it shouldn't immediately happen. Your retina will grow damage without you even noticing. Staring into the sun directly is very dangerous and can cause permanent damage. But, in other words to answer your question, directly staring into it shouldn't take more then 15-20 SECONDS.

It is very dangerous, so please don't no matter how much you think it won't damage, or even after doing it once you see that nothing happens, it does.

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A few SECONDS of staring into the mid-day Sun will blind you.

It's safe enough to do at dawn or dusk, for 20 or 30 seconds, but any longer risks blindness.

Answer 2

The sun is  93 million miles away. That is the common average figure.
More exactly, 92,955,887.6 miles on the average.

But, if we get even more exact, because of the earth's elliptical orbit around the sun, the distance changes over the course of a year. Though the orbit of the Earth is very nearly  circle, we are closest at perihelion (147 098 290 kilometers = 91 402 639.8  miles) during northern hemisphere winters, and farthest at aphelion (152 098 232 kilometers  = 94 509 459.8  miles) during northern hemisphere summers.  Yes, we northerners are closest to the Sun in the winter.

And, not that it was asked, but FYI, light from the sun takes roughly 8 minutes to reach the earth.

Answer 3

The Earth's orbit around the sun is not a perfect circle, so our distance from

the sun is not always the same. There's a closest point and a farthest point.

The closest point happens sometime during the first couple of days of January

each year. The closest distance is 91,402,640 miles.

The farthest point happens sometime during the first couple of days of July

each year. The farthest distance is 94,509,460 miles.

Answer 4

We're 93 million miles away from the Sun right here on Earth, and you can easily get a sunburn in 20 minutes if you're not careful. Proper application of protective creams and lotions, like a SPF50 sunblock or wearing a shirt, can protect you from sunburn for several hours.

The better your protective clothing or equipment, the closer you could come to the Sun without being harmed. A properly shielded spacecraft could certainly come within 30 million miles of the Sun; the Mercury Messenger spacecraft has already done so. It may be possible to come within a million miles of the Sun or even closer, for at least a short while, without ill effects. The key would be to reflect 99.9% of the incoming radiation without absorbing any, and to have cooling devices able to re-radiate into space the radiation than you cannot reflect. We cannot do that yet - but 108 years ago, we couldn't even fly. Progress is astonishingly fast.

Answer 5

The earth is closest to the sun when it passes the point in its orbit called "perihelion".

That time is always some time in the first couple of days in January.

2010 . . . January 3

2011 . . . January 3

2012 . . . January 5

2013 . . . January 2

2014 . . . January 4

2015 . . . January 4

Answer 6

The Sun's distance from the Sun is zero. If you mean the distance from Sun to Earth, that is about 150,000,000 km. You might also say the distance is one AU (Astronomical Unit), since this distance is often used to compare other distances in the Solar System.

Answer 7

Seasons occur because the Earth is tilted on her axis, not because of the distance from the sun. When the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun, it gets less sunlight, and the Southern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, so it gets more sunlight.

There are two times during the year when the northern and southern hemisphere get the same amount of light - during spring and fall.

Additional answer

Actually, the question isn't asking that. It's asking how does the Earth get close to the Sun, and the answer is that its orbit is not circular, so there are times when it is closer than others.

Answer 8

The Earth is about 93 million miles from the Sun. We're a little closer at perihelion on January 4, and a little further away at aphelion on July 2, but the difference isn't especially great; about 2%.

Answer 9

Like most questions relating to heat, the duration of the time spent by the sun is very important. Even the best heat shielding (such as the tiles used by NASA for reentry heat) are only rated for certain levels of heat and for certain amounts of time. The best way to research this question would be to look at satellites that have been sent to the planets closer to the Sun, such as Venus.

I would also point out that at the earths orbit if you were in space and did not wear a suit that your temperature would be above the boiling point. Yeah for that atmosphere huh?

Answer 10

Well, if you're in space without any protective gear, you'd die no matter how far you are from the Sun; It would still be absolute zero. However, if you are talking about being on a planet like Earth, then the liveable-space would vary due to atmosphere composition, size, and gravity of the planet.