Table of Contents
What is an important gas for star formation?
Main Sequence Stars Stars are fueled by the nuclear fusion of hydrogen to form helium deep in their interiors. The outflow of energy from the central regions of the star provides the pressure necessary to keep the star from collapsing under its own weight, and the energy by which it shines.
What does star formation require?
Edgeworth understood that star formation requires very cold gas, it most likely occurs in massive aggregates, and it should be patterned as beads on a string for the galactic scale.
Which gas is mostly found in a star?
The gas between stars is mostly hydrogen and helium scattered at varying densities between the stars in our galaxy and other galaxies. The proportions of the gases are similar to those in the Sun.
Which of the following is most important in causing a cloud of gas to collapse to form a star and planets?
Which of the following is most important in causing a cloud of gas to collapse to form a star and planets? Gravity pulls all the gas inward.
Which of the following gases are major components of star?
Stars are made of very hot gas. This gas is mostly hydrogen and helium, which are the two lightest elements.
What element is the fuel for main sequence stars?
hydrogen
Main sequence stars are characterised by the source of their energy. They are all undergoing fusion of hydrogen into helium within their cores. The rate at which they do this and the amount of fuel available depends upon the mass of the star.
How hot is interstellar gas?
8000 Kelvin
The hottest interstellar gas has a temperature of 8000 Kelvin (or more). (The Solar System, by the way, seems to be located within a large, low-density bubble within the interstellar medium.)
Which of the following is most important in causing a cloud of gas to collapse?
Gravity causes the cloud to collapse. Once bodies are large enough, gravity pulls them together to make even larger bodies.
Where does the energy for star formation come from?
Most of these cloud cores have IR sources, evidence of energy from collapsing protostars (potential energy converted to kinetic energy). Also, where we do find young stars (see below) we find them surrounded by clouds of gas, the leftover dark molecular cloud. And they occur in clusters, groups of stars that form from the same cloud core.
What causes gases to clump together to form stars?
At these temperatures, gases become molecular meaning that atoms bind together. CO and H2 are the most common molecules in interstellar gas clouds. The deep cold also causes the gas to clump to high densities. When the density reaches a certain point, stars form.
What happens to the dust during star formation?
Star Formation. As the cloud collapses, a dense, hot core forms and begins gathering dust and gas. Not all of this material ends up as part of a star — the remaining dust can become planets, asteroids, or comets or may remain as dust. In some cases, the cloud may not collapse at a steady pace.
What causes clusters of young stars to form?
Often in galaxies we find clusters of young stars near other young stars. This phenomenon is called supernova induced star formation. The very massive stars form first and explode into supernova. This makes shock waves into the molecular cloud, causing nearby gas to compress and form more stars.