[G L Tirebiter]

18 Billion Suns = 18 GigaSuns? Is a standard Sun a unit of measure?

[LibWhacker]

Yes, it is. Astronomers often speak in terms of how many solar masses an object contains: black holes, giant stars, galaxies, etc.

[zencat]

Is a standard Sun a unit of measure?

In fact it is. Although it's usually called a 'solar mass' in astronomy. The sun is used to determine the necessary mass for stellar ignition, calculating novas, neutron stars, supernovas, black holes, etc.

It's the closest, most observable frame of reference we have.