Scientific Thinkining Dec 2013 | Page 14

Hydrogen gas in the nebula starts to gather itself in one part of space, the gravity formed by this increasing number of particles will cause more and more molecules to move into this area. The increasing pressure in a small amount of space will begin to cause heat. When the pressure and heat reaches a high enough level, atomic fusion begins to take place.

The hydrogen atom fuses together to form helium, and the energy released by this reaction is great. There now begin to appear helium particles inside this perplex concoction of elements, and the pressure and heat continue to increase. As the star moves through it's life cycle, the elements that are identified inside the star can be used to observe what generation star it is. The more metalic elements there are, the hotter and closer the star is to its death.

Hydrogen fuses to form helium, three of which form carbon, and so on down the periodic table of elements. This is a theory of how the elements of the universe were formed, through the fusion of simple elements into more perplex ones in the lifecycle of stars. The heat level and generation of a star can also be identified by colour, the bluer it is the hotter it is. Early in the developmental stages of the formation of the universe, the stars that existed were mostly very big and very blue. This meant they were very powerful and full of energy, and that they contained many of the elements formed through fusion, all the way down to iron. This also meant that the lifecycle of these stars were very short, so the logitivity of the star's life does not necessarily depend on the size and power as one might expect, but on the sustainability of its gradually increasing heat level.

Nebulla

The complex becomes a protostar and then a normal star, and then a red giant. The red giant can come in either super big or normal form. The kind of size produced determines the life path the star continues into. If it's big it will turn into a super giant, and then will blast supernova and either become a very dense neutron star or black hole. The supernova releases material which will create another nebula, and can create planets in the process. If it's small it will continue on to become a planetary nebula, then a white dwarf, then a black dwarf.

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BY amru ziad

Star Cycle

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