Ra | National Geographic Society

Early civilizations recognized the importance of the sun. The chief deity in many ancient cultures was a sun god or goddess. Ancient Egyptians worshipped Ra, a falcon-headed god who carried the sun disk on his headdress. Every day, Ra would cross the sky in "solar boats."

Illustration by Peter Lloyd

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sun Encyclopedic Entry

Best For
8 - 12 and up

Subjects
Earth Science, Physics, Biology

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Students

The sun is an ordinary star, one of about 100 billion in our galaxy, the Milky Way. This ordinary star makes possible all life in the known universe.

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Illustration by Peter Lloyd

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