If the sun were exhausted of its nuclear energy, what would happen to our energy resourses on earth???
596030
The sun isn't expected to exhaust its nuclear energy for another 4-5 billion years, but when it does, it's supposed to turn into a white dwarf.  On Earth, pretty much everything would die after getting roasted, but that's a bit too far down the line to worry about.  There's a better timeline here: http://www-astronomy.mps.ohio-state.edu/~pogge/Lectures/vistas97.html\n\nPerpetual motion is pretty tough because there's always going to be some sort of friction, which causes heat and energy to be taken out of the system.  You then need to keep putting energy into the system for the motion to continue.
292425
Well, very interesting question I must say. Our Sun was formed about 4600 million years ago and will continue to give out energy for an equal period of time. So, the earth is safe for the next 4600 million years. Phew!!\n\nBut, if you want to know what will be the fate of our sun (or any star for that matter) after it enters the final stages of its life, then read on.....\n\n(1) The first phase will be THE RED-GIANT PHASE. In this phase, the fusion reactions in the core of the sun will stop and it will start shrinking, this will disturb the equilibrium of our sun and it will start expanding like crazy to re-adjust it. Its color will change to red & it will become very very VERY big!\n\n(2) Now, the second stage will be the WHITE DWARF STAGE. Here, the expanding outer shell will be removed eventually and the shrinking Helium core will shrink into an extremely dense ball of matter due to gravitation. The helium nuclei will start to fuse together to form Carbon nuclei & will release tremendous amount of energy in the process & the sun will start glowing white.\n\n(3) Ultimately, the helium fuel will burn out & the sun will fade into space as a dense lump of matter.\n\n\nBut, if we consider the case of a much bigger star (even bigger than our sun), we'll find more final stages. Those stages will be- \na) Supernova- exploding star\nb) Neutron star- After explosion\nc) Pulsar- A spinning neutron star\nd) Black hole- Formed by an indefinite contraction of a heavy neutron star.\n\n:) Hope you enjoyed all the info :)\nHave a nice day
984985
The sun would go out 8 minutes later, turn into a neutron star and we will be irradiated by lethal radiation.\n\nThe sun is superheated plasma and the sun circulates its plasma.  Gravity pulls it in, which makes it hotter up to the point of fusion.  This energy is so powerful that it can overcome the huge power of gravity and rise to the surface, before it is caught by the sun's gravity.  When the sun gets a "tummy ache" then it shoots out more energetic streams creating solar flares.  Under normal conditions some particles are so energetic that they can escape the sun, this is the solar wind.  It is all driven by the circulating plasma and the fusion reaction.\n\nStop this fusion reaction then all solar flares will collapse, the solar wind will disappear so in 8 minutes earthlings will know something is wrong.\n\nSeconds later the only force on the sun will be gravity and it will collapse upon itself.  The sun is too small to form a black hole so it will collapse to the size of a neutron star and all the light will go out.\n\nThe continued gravitational collapse will break up some particles, most of the subatomic particles won't be strong enough to escape, but x-rays and gamma rays can.  Once the new neutron star reaches a point of equilibrium then the radiation produced will slow down.  Until it reaches that point though the new neutron star will be spewing forth only lethal types of radiation.\n\nAfter a few hours\nAll weather is solar driven, so the winds would die and any clouds would stop.  The temperatures would equalize so those clouds would start to move toward the poles (north for the northern hemisphere, and south for the southern hemisphere).  This wind would be very weak though and once the temperatures are equalized it will die.\n\nThe radiation may not be enough to kill all life on earth, but it will cripple it making it weaker and just decreasing the time for the death spiral.  New mutations will appear and die out.  Most wouldn’t have survived any way and the rest will face conditions that are too hard to live for very long, but they may hang on long enough to see the rest of the animals die.\n\nPlants do have storage cells so they will take time to die.  To them it will seem as if a sudden winter came upon them.  They will shed their leaves and go dormant.  The evergreens will still be trying to get light and expending energy to hold out their leaves so their reserves will drop faster and they will start to die first.\n\nAfter a few days\nWhen the plants go into winter mode they will drop all of their leaves (it takes too much energy to hold them), and all of their fruit and vegetables.\n\nThe cooling will be too fast for animals to adapt so they will suffer the full effects of the never ending weather.\n\nAfter a week\nMeanwhile most animals will go insane soon.  We need light to see; even nocturnal animals magnify the existing light.  Once the sun goes out then the only bodies that will have any light are the gas giants of Jupiter and Saturn, because they are emitting radiation.  At first it will only seem like night to the animals, but they live by circadian rhythms so once those rhythms are disrupted they will start to get restless, irritable and soon they will go insane.\n\nNocturnal hunters will do well at first, but those that hunt by day; like the hawk and the eagle when soon starve.  The restless animals will make them more skittish, and harder to hunt, when they get irritable they will become more dangerous to hunt, and when they go insane they will be extremely hard to hunt, until they exhaust all of their reserves and collapse.  The nocturnal predators will do well now, but the diurnal ones will be starving to death.  As more animals die the scavengers will do well, but vultures need to see so they won’t be around for very long.  Without their competition the insects will thrive.  Most predators will not eat a corpse that they or their fellows didn’t kill, because it could
1058186
You're tired and lethargic from being too hot and a little dehydrated. Probably a little sleepy and stiff from lying around too, if you're actually sunbathing.\n\nThe suns energy is electromagnetic radiation, that's not the same kind of energy your body runs on. Your body runs on chemical energy, that is, energy derived from breaking down chemicals.\n\nThe sun's energy comes from fusion reactions.\nA fusion reaction is when two atomic nuclei (the part in the middle of an atom) are joined into another heavier element.\n\nOur sun is a medium size main sequence star. Which means that it isn't too big, and that it's in the prime of it's life. It fuses hydrogen into helium for the most part. \n\nWhen a fusion reaction happens not all the mass of the two atoms from the beginning goes into the final single atom, the rest flies off as radiation. The radiation excites the atoms in the sun and they give off the electromagnetic radiation that we receive.
368249
this is an 11 year cycle of our sun. it will start revving up around 2008 and should peak around 2012.  we have had them in the past say about 22 years ago. If it dose happen the thing we need IS solar panels.  because the transformers on the planet will be taken out by power surges of the sun and we will be without power for as much as 10 years while they rebuild them. (we really need alternative energy then) but i really don't think it is something we really need to worry about.
759134
I'm afraid its "Goodnight Vienna" for us. As this is unlikely to happen for another 5 billion years or so though, there is a fair chance that we will have blown ourselves up or evolved into something a little more intelligent and cleared off elsewhere by the time it happens.\n\nAlthough the Sun uses up around 5 million tons of hydrogen every second, it still has enough left in its core to last for another 5 billion years or so. When it finally does run out of fuel, though, it will swell up to many times its present size and become what is known as a red giant. \n \nThe outer layers of the Sun will grow to swallow up the planets Mercury and Venus and they may even reach out as far as Earth. Way before the Earth is swallowed the surface of our planet will be scorched, its oceans boiled dry and most of the atmosphere will be stripped away.\n\nAs a red giant, the Sun might be able to exist for a few more million years. During this time it will shed matter quite quickly. The solar wind will strengthen to a solar gale. Finally, the Sun may cast off most of its outer layers as a bright shell of gas called a planetary nebula.\n\nAll that will be left behind is a very hot, dense core. The Sun, in fact, will have become a white dwarf - a star no bigger than the Earth. Gradually, over many millions of years, even this small star will cool. The Sun will end its days quietly as a dimming ember in space.\n\nThe attached link shows a photo of a star similar to the Sun in its death throes.
1185197
Our sun will not explode. It will eventually burn out in about est. 5 billion years. Then, for the next several million years it will swell to a red giant which will possibly engulf the Earth and quite possibly Mars. Then eventually the remainder will be pushed off into space and it will shrink to a white dwarf.
477262
No one knows, at it's current rate of energy useage, a few million years. Which planet would I choose? Can't, you & I are already dead, besides all planets in our solar system would be lifeless (no sun).
946481
you could in theory create infinite power and with infinite power would soon come infinite energy weapon. For instance You could power every building on earth forever. Also you could create a laser that if properly cooled could destroy anything even things in other galaxies. Also you could make a reactor that would overload and could theoretically be stronger than a super nova. Basicly ultimate doomsday weapon. This is greater than 100% efficiency machine. We all would die. Basically imagine the nuke but one that destroys the universe. The power would be exponential so in a mater of days you could destroy everything once again We Would Be Dead Within 2 Years.
662679
We all know that if they have the nuclear tech the bomb will be used to destroy many people....if they are really concerned  about energy (especially electrical) solar energy will be great for that part of the world...I am sure the U.S.A will help in this project.
214180
Nuclear power is very raw and easy to create.  Very little has to be done to provide immense amounts of power.  Infact, if more than necessary is done (say you move a certain part more than an inch), too much power can be produced, causing a nuclear meltdown.  \n\nI'm not the nuclear expert, so I won't go into specifics.  I fully believe that we will only run out of nuclear power if the Earth were to be no more.
460294
Depends on what for.  Nuclear fission is great for generating electricity.  Biodiesel has lots of promise as a motor vehicle fuel (not to mention would be great for the US Agriculture industry).  Solar power can greatly reduce the amount of power individual homeowners have to purchase from larger providers (but the initial investemnt is expensive).  Probably a combination of Fossil Fuel alternatives would be better than adopting a single alternative replacement.
952509
The sun balances it's tendancy to gravitationally collapse with radiation pressure.  Once nuclear fusion stops, the radiation pressure won't be able to stop the sun from collapsing anymore.
617519
I worry more about mass extinction events like an asteroid impact or finding out that giant aliens have just been raising humanity as a food source to harvest en masse. Bird flu might do a job on us or some alien organism brought back by space exploration which our bodies are unable to manufacture antibodies. Maybe global nuclear conflict will leave the earth a smoking glow-in-the-dark beacon rotating and wobbling in the solar system. Excuse me I have to go find my aluminum foil hat to block the gamma rays. Wait what if planet Jupiter is a brown dwarf star and decides to go nova? What if the sun flames out? What if the magma in the earth's crust makes the poles flip positions? .........
1010702
Yes, the sun will burnout. It is using hydrogen as a nuclear fusion fuel and will run out of it in about 5 billion years. At that time, the hydrogen in the Sun's core will be gone, the outer layers will expand and the Sun will become a red giant. It will continue burning hydrogen (and hellium) from these outer layers for about 1 billion years. Then all the fuel will be gone and what has left form the sun will collapse to form a white dwarf. The white dwarf won't have fuel to burn, but it will be initially very hot, so it will emit radiation for many millions of years before it cools down.\n\nI believe by that time life forms on Earth will be advanced enough to survive in one way or another, including the ancestors of humans. In fact, life forms will be affected by the Sun much earlier. In a 100 million years, the Sun will become hot enough to accelerate hydrogen molecules in the Earth's atmosphere enough so that they leave the planet. This would eventually lead to the evaporation of the oceans (affecting marine life) and all other water. However, by that time, human ancestors or other life forms should have the knowledge and ability to prevent this from happening (moving Earth further away from the Sun, building a protective shield, etc.)\n\nThank you!
127233
Time will tell this, and accordingly those circumstances would be leading us to different solutions.\n-Recycled usage if possible could be made, in power generation.\n-Highly protected sealed container buried under sea bed.\n-Sending them stray in the outer space.\n-There are possiblities that some poverty ridden country would be subjected to menacing radioactive materials in order to create battle fields of future (the way human rights are being violated these days).
406243
very long. this is because the sun is a very large star and will take billions or rather trillions of years. when it does burn out however, it will be big enough to swell so big that it will swallow mercury, venus and possibly earth ^^ good luck