The subthemes of Sun discussed above derived from a a poem complaining about the Sun’s interruption, a painting with the Sun over olive trees, a song punctuated by melancholy sunrises, and a movie with roasting in desert heat. Here are two more subthemes that don’t link so directly to any of the four works of art.

Records : In the realm of the Sun, highests, lowests, and other superlatives abound. Here are a few:

Highest recorded temperature on Earth: On September 13, 1922, 136°F was recorded at El Azizia, Libya. NOAA

Longest night: In the northernmost town in the world, Ny-Ålesund, on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, the Midnight Sun lasts for 131 days or so, from about April 17 to August 26. Time and Date

Brightness of the Sun: For each square meter on Earth, it lavishes 127,000 lumens. 16.24 quintillion lumens of sunlight hit here every second. Kogalla

Brightest star: Sirius, the “Dog Star,” in winter; Arcturus, in the constellation of Bootes, The Herdsman, during the summer, which is the fourth-brightest star visible from Earth. Forbes

Number of stars visible by the naked eye: Upper end estimates total about 10,000 visible stars, while other estimates place the number closer to 5,000. Earth Sky

Largest star: UY Scuti, a hypergiant with a radius around 1,700 times larger than the Sun. Space.com

Expressions : Below are figurative sayings that relate to the Sun. For a master list of online sources that have contributed idioms to the various Themes, see Work Additional Subthemes. For this collection of 27, aside from identifying candidate expressions myself, I drew particularly on English by Day. It struck me, by the way, that fewer metaphorical expressions exist for “sun” than one might think, given its importance.

a place in the sun (a successful or desirable position)
a touch of the sun (a mild sunburn)
at the crack of dawn (just when the sun starts rising)
bask in something (relish praise or celebrity)
catch the sun (relax and enjoy the outdoors)
everything under the sun (a broad range of topics)
fly too close to the sun (take too big a risk)
go to bed with the sun (settle down to sleep in the early evening)
have the sun in your eyes (unable to see because of brightness)
head for the setting sun (travel west, but mostly to avoid the law)
make hay while the sun shines (earn money while you have the opportunity)
nothing new under the sun (everything has been thought and said long ago)
ray of sunshine (something that makes others feel happier during difficulties)
ride off into the sunset (disappear after a notable life)
rise with the sun (get up early)
soak up the sun (laze around in a warm place)
someone’s moment in the sun (a brief period of fame)
someone’s sun has set (a person’s ability or reputation has declined)
sun worshipper (a person who values a deep tan)
sunset years (the last years of a person’s life)
the Sun Belt (southern parts of the U.S.)
the sun is over the yardarm (time for a morning drink)
think the sun rises and sets on (completely infatuated with someone)
think the sun shines out of someone’s backside (so in love you don’t notice defects)
under the sun (everywhere)
walk on sunshine (in a state of euphoria)
where the sun doesn’t shine (the derriere)