Main Navigation The Sun Main Site Splash Page News and Updates Bibliography Solar System The Sun Mercury History Apollo Missions  + Saturn V Engine Space Shuttle Mercury Mission Gemini Mission Orbiters/Rovers The Voyagers  + Voyager 1  + Voyager 2 Hubble Telescope Vikings I + II Spirit and Oppritunity The sun is a big ball of exploding gas that lies 95 Billion miles from Earth. It is roughly 875,000 miles (1.4 million km) in diameter. Light from the sun takes approximately 8 minutes to travel to Earth.