Home > Astrophysics > Star Formation Theories

How does star formation occur in the interstellar medium?

Answer 1

From interstellar gas.

Stars form inside relatively dense concentrations of interstellar gas and dust known as molecular clouds. These regions are extremely cold (temperature about #10K# to #20K#, just above absolute zero). At these temperatures, gases become molecular, meaning that atoms bind together.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Answer 2

Joseph Allen

In the interstellar medium, stars are formed when dense regions inside molecular clouds collapse due to gravity. These regions heat up during the collapse process and eventually become protostars. Protostars take on mass from their surroundings and eventually reach a point where nuclear fusion ignites in their cores, forming main sequence stars.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Answer from HIX Tutor

When evaluating a one-sided limit, you need to be careful when a quantity is approaching zero since its sign is different depending on which way it is approaching zero from. Let us look at some examples.