What is the difference between the sun and the moon?

Answer 1

The difference is simply size and composition. The sun is a star which produces light, and the moon only reflects light.

The sun is a ~865,000 mile diameter ball of very light elements -- 73% hydrogen and 25% helium. The pressure at the core is 340 billion earth atmospheres which creates about 27 million degrees F heat -- enough heat to cause hydrogen to fuse into helium in the core of the sun, releasing energy and making it a star.

The moon is a ~2,200 mile diameter ball of heavy elements (oxygen, silicon, iron, nickel, etc. etc.) left over from the formation of the sun, as are all planets, moons and asteroids in the solar system. Pressure at the center is nowhere near high enough to cause fusion, so the moon is cooler and has a hard surface.

Some light elements were also left over from the formation of the sun, and that gas was blown outward by the initial solar wind after the sun formed. That gas coalesced into the gas giant planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune which are, in essence, balls of gas (mostly hydrogen just like the sun), except they are too small to generate the core pressure necessary to trigger nuclear fusion.

For Jupiter to become a star, it would have to be about 40 times more massive. Then fusion would start at its core and the planet would shine dimly ... a brown dwarf star. If Jupiter were 40 times more massive, it would be slightly less than double its current diameter of 88,000 miles.

Answer 2

The sun is a star the moon is a satellite , the sun gives out light, the moon has no light of its own, the sun is steady the moon rotates. The sun is gassy the moon is solid. The sun is to hot, the moon is cold and man can walk on it.

Answer 3

The sun is a star that emits its own light and energy, while the moon is a natural satellite that reflects light from the sun. The sun is much larger and hotter than the moon, and it plays a key role in sustaining life on Earth through photosynthesis and providing warmth.