What is Plasma and Why is it 99% of the Universe?

[Brett13]

Im in High School in New Brunswick, Canada and I am doing an APA research paper on plasma( or at least trying to). And I've been looking around the internet and found some interesting stuff. But basically the only thing I've gotten out of my research( which has been mainly online books/papers) is that plasma is 99% of the universe and its a heated gas. I have also found some examples of plasma but nothing concrete that I can really write a Grade 12 Chemistry paper on. I need something that I can actually understand without going into complex equations and diagrams like the maxwellian velocity curve. Is there any way someone could send me a URL or tell me some things about Plasma? It would be greatly appreciated.

 

[berkeman]

Im in High School in New Brunswick, Canada and I am doing an APA research paper on plasma( or at least trying to). And I've been looking around the internet and found some interesting stuff. But basically the only thing I've gotten out of my research( which has been mainly online books/papers) is that plasma is 99% of the universe and its a heated gas. I have also found some examples of plasma but nothing concrete that I can really write a Grade 12 Chemistry paper on. I need something that I can actually understand without going into complex equations and diagrams like the maxwellian velocity curve. Is there any way someone could send me a URL or tell me some things about Plasma? It would be greatly appreciated.

Welcome to the PF. You've chosen a very interesting and practical subject. Here is a reasonable intro article, with links to other resources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasma_(physics )

At your level, I'd suggest initially defining what a plasma is (ionized gas), and discussing many of the practical applications and uses of plasmas. The article should give you additional ideas for your paper. Have fun!