Which of the following might be found in a giant molecular cloud?
Giant molecular clouds are vast cosmic objects, composed primarily of hydrogen molecules and helium atoms, where new stars and planets are born. These clouds can contain more mass than a million suns, and stretch across hundreds of light years.
What are the 2 reasons molecular clouds are the perfect place for star formation?
Molecular clouds are favorable locations for star formation for two reasons: low temperature and high density. Their low temperature keeps their pressures about the same as other interstellar clouds, despite the higher density.
Which of the following must be occurring in order for a molecular cloud to collapse and form stars?
3) Explain why stars form only in molecular clouds, the coldest, densest parts of the interstellar medium. Answer: A cloud collapses and ultimately forms stars when gravity overcomes thermal pressure. The latter depends both on the density and temperature of the cloud.
Which of the following must be occurring in order for a molecular cloud to collapse and form stars quizlet?
The strength of gravity within a molecular cloud depends on… Which of the following must be occurring in order for a molecular cloud to collapse and form stars? The buildup of thermal energy in a collapsing gas cloud leads to thermal pressure that can halt the gravitational collapse.
What is the process called when a molecular cloud breaks up into smaller clouds?
Star formation is the process by which dense regions within molecular clouds in interstellar space, sometimes referred to as “stellar nurseries” or “star-forming regions”, collapse and form stars.
What is the most abundant substance in molecular clouds?
H2
What are the two most common molecules in such a cloud?
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. Since the regions are dense, they are opaque to visible light and are known as dark nebula.
Why do molecular clouds exist?
Molecular clouds are so important because they are the raw material of stars and planets. Such a density can only occur if the temperatures are very low, otherwise the thermal pressure of the gas would lead to an expansion of the dark nebula and no new stars would be able to form.
What are interstellar clouds called?
Molecular cloud, also called dark nebula, interstellar clump or cloud that is opaque because of its internal dust grains. The form of such dark clouds is very irregular: they have no clearly defined outer boundaries and sometimes take on convoluted serpentine shapes because of turbulence.
What are the 4 types of interstellar gas?
In astronomy, the interstellar medium (ISM) is the matter and radiation that exist in the space between the star systems in a galaxy. This matter includes gas in ionic, atomic, and molecular form, as well as dust and cosmic rays. It fills interstellar space and blends smoothly into the surrounding intergalactic space.
Are space clouds real?
A nebula is a giant cloud of dust and gas in space. Some nebulae (more than one nebula) come from the gas and dust thrown out by the explosion of a dying star, such as a supernova. Other nebulae are regions where new stars are beginning to form.
Are interstellar clouds hot?
Interstellar gas clouds that have been heated to several thousand Kelvin can be seen as emission nebulae such as this. These clouds tend to have temperatures of around 100 Kelvin and are commonly named HI clouds, since astronomers often refer to neutral hydrogen as HI (pronounced H-one).
Why does dust Redden starlight?
When light from a star encounters this cloud, the short wavelength blue light “bounces back” from the cloud towards us, and the longer wavelength red light passes through. Dust clouds absorb starlight and re-emit it as invisible ultraviolet radiation & Dust clouds redden starlight.
Why does hydrogen glow red?
The electron can jump to higher energy states, provided that there is some external source to supply the additional energy needed. This increase in an electron’s energy state means it’s excited. In many nebulae, hydrogen atoms emit all four of the above colors, which causes them to look pinkish-red.
Why is interstellar space so hot?
Interstellar Medium: Hot. The most violent, and therefore hottest, ejection of gas into the interstellar medium is from supernova explosions. A supernova remnant (SNR) is the structure resulting from the gigantic explosion of a star in a supernova.
What temperature is interstellar space?
The average temperature of outer space near Earth is 283.32 kelvins (10.17 degrees Celsius or 50.3 degrees Fahrenheit). In empty, interstellar space, the temperature is just 3 kelvins, not much above absolute zero, which is the coldest anything can ever get.
How many atoms are in interstellar space?
It has been calculated that there are roughly 0.25 atoms per cubic meter of interstellar space.
How dark is interstellar space?
Interstellar space is dark very dark. You would only have starlight to see by and starlight light amplification vision systems exist. Direction to your friend can be important. With a background of the milky way you friend might look like a shadow.
Is space light or dark?
Space Is Dark, But Scientists Have Found Unexplained Light : NPR. Space Is Dark, But Scientists Have Found Unexplained Light Scientists have used a NASA probe way out in space, beyond Pluto, to measure visible light that’s not connected to any known source such as stars or galaxies.
What’s the hardest color to see?
blue light