The diameter of the Sun is about 6.49 times the diameter of Proxima Centauri. Selected basis: approximate values.
Both rulers start at the same zero and share one linear scale. Artwork keeps its original proportions.
1,391,000 km - Diameter; approximate.
The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. Its light and heat power most life and weather on Earth.
Our star, modelled with the IAU nominal solar radius. “Surface” means the visible photosphere. The core is much hotter; this is not a solid surface.
IAU — nominal solar and planetary conversion constants214,300 km - Diameter; rounded model.
Proxima Centauri is a red dwarf star and the closest known star to the Sun.
A rounded red-dwarf reference. Radius and mass are approximate.
Defined examples — our methodology
There’s always another scale
SpaceSun1,391,000 kmThe Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System.
SpaceProxima Centauri214,300 kmProxima Centauri is a red dwarf star and the closest known star to the Sun.
SpaceEarth12,740 kmEarth is the rocky planet on which we live and the third planet from the Sun.
SpaceJupiter139,800 kmJupiter is a giant planet composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, orbiting the Sun beyond the asteroid belt.
SpaceNeutron star20 kmA neutron star is the dense remnant core left after a massive star explodes as a supernova, composed mostly of neutrons.
SpaceEarth–Sun distance1 AUThe Earth–Sun distance, or astronomical unit, is the standard measure of separation between Earth and the Sun used in astronomy.A closer look
Side by side
Illustrative artwork · not to scale
Illustrative artwork · not to scale
Illustrative artwork · not to scale
Illustrative artwork · not to scaleGot a good eye for scale?