Star Birth: Process & Gravity Effects

AI Thread Summary
Star birth is initiated by the gravitational attraction of gas and debris, primarily hydrogen, which coalesce over time. As these materials gather, they form dense regions that can trigger nuclear fusion if sufficient gravitational energy is present. This process is influenced by the Jeans mass, which determines the conditions necessary for collapse and star formation. The resulting stars can consume surrounding matter or lead to the formation of planets and other celestial bodies. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for grasping stellar evolution.
wolram
Gold Member
Dearly Missed
Messages
4,410
Reaction score
555
hi,i have two questions i hope you can ansewer.
what is the process that initiates star birth?
how does gravity focus on a single point,that attracts space debris to eventualy form a star?
 
Astronomy news on Phys.org
Originally posted by wolram
hi,i have two questions i hope you can ansewer.
what is the process that initiates star birth?
how does gravity focus on a single point,that attracts space debris to eventualy form a star?
Go to:
http://www.astronomynotes.com/evolutn/s3.htm#A1.2.1

and keep clicking "next section" for a real good basis on stellar evolution.
 
Star birth is caused by gravity...

Gas and other debris mill about for a long time, slowly being drawn together by mutual gravitational attraction.

A 'thick' sea of mainly Hydrogen forms, with pockets of other material.

Like a precipitate matter forms around minor deformations in the 'gas solution'.

Sometimes stars are formed, if there is enough gravitational energy within the matter to kick-start a fusion reaction. Otherwise just more, bigger chunks of space debris.

This matter gets eaten up by the stars that have already formed or else become planets or floating clumps of matter.
 
The reason for the collapse has to due with the Jeans radius, or Jeans mass, do a google for that and it should help out alot.
 
This thread is dedicated to the beauty and awesomeness of our Universe. If you feel like it, please share video clips and photos (or nice animations) of space and objects in space in this thread. Your posts, clips and photos may by all means include scientific information; that does not make it less beautiful to me (n.b. the posts must of course comply with the PF guidelines, i.e. regarding science, only mainstream science is allowed, fringe/pseudoscience is not allowed). n.b. I start this...
Today at about 4:30 am I saw the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter, where they were about the width of the full moon, or one half degree apart. Did anyone else see it? Edit: The moon is 2,200 miles in diameter and at a distance of 240,000 miles. Thereby it subtends an angle in radians of 2,200/240,000=.01 (approximately). With pi radians being 180 degrees, one radian is 57.3 degrees, so that .01 radians is about .50 degrees (angle subtended by the moon). (.57 to be more exact, but with...
Back
Top