Our sun : biography of a star / Christopher Cooper ; foreword by David Spergel, PhD, chair, Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University ; preface by Madhulika Guhathakurta, PhD, lead scientist, Living with a star program, NASA.

Includes index.

Introduction. Solar exploration -- The birth of our sun. The Big Bang -- The early universe in microwaves -- Star nurseries -- Going supernova -- Fusion : energy of combination -- Two's company -- The structure of our sun. Layers of our sun -- The solar wind -- The sun's rotation -- The sun's magnetism -- The importance of our sun. How far away is the sun? -- Let there be light -- Evolution of sight -- The miracle (and curse) of photosynthesis -- The worship of our sun -- The history of our sun. The Aristotelian model -- The Ptolemaic model -- Heliocentrism -- Who invented the telescope? -- Spectroscopy : shedding light on the movement and composition of stars -- Modern telescopes -- The power of our sun. The Earth's magnetosphere -- Solar power : harnessing the sun's energy -- Power over power : the perfect storm -- The solar cycle -- The future of our sun. Running out of gas -- The red giant phase -- The white dwarf phase -- The black dwarf phase -- Looking ahead.

Our Sun reveals the science behind the sun, traces its impact on human history, and reveals its growing importance to our future way of life.