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Star Formation
Interstellar Matter
Nebulae
Absorption
Emission
Neutral
Molecular
H II Regions
Reflection
Star Formation
Star Forming Regions
Stages of Formation
Examples The Fox Fur Nebula
The Interstellar Medium (ISM)
The space between the stars is not
completely empty, but filled with a very
dilute gas and dust. It produces some of
the most beautiful objects in the sky.
We are interested in the interstellar
medium because
a) dense interstellar clouds are the birth
place of stars
b) clouds alter and absorb the light from
stars behind them
Interstellar Matter
The interstellar medium consists of gas and dust.
Atoms, mostly hydrogen
and helium, and small
molecules make up the
gas.
The dust is more like
clumps of soot or
smoke (and ice?).
Dust absorbs light and
reddens light that gets
through by scattering.
This image shows
distinct reddening of
stars near the edge of
the dust cloud
Interstellar Reddening
Blue light is strongly scattered
and absorbed by interstellar
clouds
Red light can more easily
penetrate the cloud, but is still
absorbed to some extent
Infrared
radiation is
hardly
scattered at all
Barnard 68
Foreground
interstellar
clouds make
the
background
stars appear
Visible Infrared redder
Interstellar Matter
Reddening
can interfere
with
blackbody
temperature
measurement,
but spectral
lines do not
shift
Interstellar Matter
Interstellar dust grains are complex in shape (left); on the
right is the result of computer modeling of how a dust
grain might grow.
Interstellar Matter
Dense clouds
of gas and
dust absorb
the light from
the stars
behind;
They appear
dark in front Barnard 86
of a bright Horsehead Nebula
background
Dark or Absorption Nebulae
Light from distant stars may pass through more than
one nebula; it is often possible to sort out the spectra
of the star and the nebulae.
Structure of the ISM
The ISM contains two main types of emission nebulae:
HI clouds:
Cold (T ~100 K) clouds of neutral hydrogen (HI)
Moderate number density (n ~10 – a few hundred
atoms/cm3)
Size: ~100 pc—they can be detected at radio
frequencies
Hot intercloud medium (HII regions):
Hot (T ~ a few 1000 K)
Ionized hydrogen (HII)
Low density (n ~0.1 atom/cm3)
Gas remains ionized because of the very low
density.
Detecting HI clouds
21-Centimeter Radiation
Interstellar gas emits low-energy radiation by means of
the spin-flip transition in the hydrogen atom.
21-Centimeter Radiation
The emitted photon has a
wavelength of 21 centimeters,
which is in the radio portion of
the electromagnetic spectrum.
Actual 21-cm spectra are
complex because the lines are
Doppler-shifted and
broadened.
The Doppler shift is caused by
the radial velocity of the
cloud. It is used to measure
the radial velocity.
Molecular Clouds
The densest gas clouds are also very cold, around 20
K. These clouds tend to contain more molecules than
atoms.
Transitions between rotation states of a molecule emit
radio-frequency photons unique to the molecule.
Molecular Clouds
Stage 2:
Individual cloud fragments begin to collapse.
Once the density and temperature is high
enough, there is no further fragmentation.
Stage 3:
The interior of the fragment has begun to heat
from the loss of gravitational energy and the
center is about 10,000 K.
The Formation of Stars Like the Sun
Stage 4:
The core of the cloud is
now a protostar, and
makes its first
appearance on the H–R
diagram.
The Formation of Stars Like the Sun
Planetary formation has begun, but the protostar
is still not in equilibrium – all heating comes
from gravitational collapse.
The Formation of Stars Like the Sun
Stages 5, 6 and 7 can be followed
on the H–R diagram:
The protostar’s luminosity
decreases even as its
temperature rises because it is
becoming more compact.
At stage 6, the core reaches
106 K, and nuclear fusion begins.
The protostar has become a star,
but it is not in equilibrium.
The star continues to contract
and increase in temperature until
it is in equilibrium. This is stage
7: The star has reached the main
sequence and will remain there
as long as it has hydrogen to
fuse.
The Contraction of a Protostar
When the star first reaches the main sequence, it will be on the lower edge
of the main sequence band. This is called zero age main sequence (ZAMS)
From Protostars to
Stars
Star emerges
from the
enshrouding
dust cocoon
Ignition of
fusion
processes
4 1H 4He
Evidence of Star Formation
Nebula around
S Monocerotis:
Contains many massive,
very young stars,
Bok
globules:
~10–1000
solar
masses;
Contracting
to form
protostars
Globules
Evaporating gaseous globules
(“EGGs”): Newly forming stars
exposed by the ionizing radiation
from nearby massive stars
The Orion Nebula:
An Active Star-Forming Region
Location of
the Great
Nebula in
Orion (M 42)
The Trapezium
The 4 trapezium stars:
Brightest, very young
(less than 2 million
years old) stars in the
central region of the
Orion nebula