AAT dome, Siding Spring
The Sun
Shared inner approach · Timor RoadThe Sun holds 99.86% of the solar system’s mass. Every second it converts four million tonnes of matter into the light that powers life on Earth. In about five billion years it will swell into a red giant.
- Type
- G-type main-sequence star (yellow dwarf)
- Distance
- 0 AU
- Diameter
- 1,392,700 km
- Orbit
- Centre of the solar system
- Moons
- Eight planets, dwarf planets, and countless small bodies
- Model size
- 36.6 m — the AAT dome itself
- On the Drive
- You are here
- Found
- The Romans named it Sol. At this scale the AAT dome is the Sun.
Missions
SOHO, Parker Solar Probe (closest approach ~6.9 million km), Solar Orbiter, and the Anglo-Australian Telescope itself.
Country around the board
You have completed the scaled journey. The AAT dome stands for our life-giving star. Here modern astronomy and ancient Kamilaroi sky knowledge meet. The Emu in the Sky stretches across the Milky Way above you.
Where to look
Search Google Maps for the planet plus the road or town. Boards are large, dark blue, and sit on the five approach roads — then Timor Road and Observatory Road for the inner worlds.
No service just now. This board is on your phone. Open in Maps when you next have signal.