The universe, although much studied, is still a great mystery for scientists and astronomers and little by little, they are discovering various aspects that allow us to know a little more about what is hidden in the formation of the planets, how they are aligned or as they are and also about the stars. These are now our protagonists, and of which we are finally going to explain what their training implies and where they are born. In On History we explain below, How is a star formed?
Article Index:
- How does a star form?
- ALMA Observatory to observe the formation of stars
- Double and variable stars
How does a star form?
- If you are fond of stargazing, surely you have ever wondered how they are formed? and that question finally has an answer thanks to the work that has been done since SOUL.
- From this observatory and thanks to its new technology, it will now be possible to decipher how a star really forms, observing a dark cloud that will give rise to the largest star so far found in the Milky Way.
- To find out the origin of a star, the ALMA observatory will study what are known as »»monstrous stars»» (»»monster stars»») or »»massive stars»»
- These stars have a mass 100 times that of the Sun or more. The most massive stars form in a cool, dark cloud, commonly called »»stellar womb»».
- Now, if you look at one of those areas from ALMA, located 11,000 light years awaya team of international researchers led by France and the United Kingdom will be able to see even the core of a dark cloud, which is made up of a mass 500 times greater than the Sun.
ALMA Observatory to observe the formation of stars:
- SOUL (whose initials are those corresponding to Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) is an astronomical facility that has a high-tech telescope that is supported by 66 large antennas. By means of millimeter waves with which the light received by all these antennas is combined, it is possible to obtain very good quality images of the stars.
- The truth is that it is the star from which you can see its origin we will not get to contemplate it constituted«although in a few years it will be possible to see significant changes in its development that until now had never been observed, and that will mean the direct verification of the theory on the formation of a star«, as pointed out by J. Miguel Mas Hesse, head of the Project Office of the Center for Astrobiology (CAB).
- The dark and cold cloud, which gives rise to these stars, contains large amounts of gas from the materials that it absorbs towards its core and that causes nuclear reactions to begin that give rise to the formation of a star that When fully created, it will have a mass 100 times greater than the Sun.. When the nuclear reactions begin, the star will ignite and begin to expel gas that will then gradually disperse.
Double and variable stars
The knowledge of the stars is an enormously extensive field and full of surprises. We still have many things to discover about the stars and their study still has more questions than answers, despite the numerous data that have been obtained about them in recent centuries. The different types of stars that exist are enormously complex and very different from each other, even changing over time or in consideration of different phenomena. Entire books have been written focused on explaining the different types and characteristics that known stars have, but below we are going to highlight only two very special phenomena: that of double stars and the variable stars.
First of all, let’s talk about variable stars. What does it mean for a star to be considered a “variable” star? Any expert or amateur student of the stars knows that the intensity of many of them varies from time to time, something that even happens to the Sun itself. But these variations are very small and practically have no importance. However, in the case of variable stars, its luminosity changes in a significant wayon many occasions following a certain pattern, which makes these variable stars very special celestial bodies.
Variable stars are classified into two main types. On the one hand we have intrinsic variable stars, in which the change in its luminosity is caused by physical changes that occur inside the celestial body itself. Within this first main type, there are in turn three subgroups: cataclysmic variable stars (those in which the variation is produced by some abrupt or sudden change within their own physical body), pulsating variables (those that expand or contract as part of their natural growth process, thus causing differences in their luminescence) and eruptive variables (in which the changes are produced by explosions that take place on its surface).
The second type is called extrinsic variables and, as their name suggests, they describe those stars whose change is caused by a cause external to the star itself. On this occasion, this type is subdivided into two categories. We meet the rotating variableswhich are those stars whose luminescence varies as a result of their own rotation, and with the eclipsing binary variables, which are those that are affected by the translation of other stars. Some of the most famous stars in the Solar System are, in fact, variable stars, such as various components of the constellation Aries, Gemini, Andromeda, Taurus or Virgo, to name just a few cases, or the famous supernovae.
On the other hand, double stars They present another type of peculiarity. It is true that the most common is to see some stars grouped with others forming groups such as constellations, but in this special case, it is about two stars that are seen from the earth as if they were very close to each other or as if they acted together.
There are two main types of double stars. The most interesting are the calls binary stars. In this case, although in the sky it can be seen that the two stars are quite close together, when they are observed through a microscope, it is seen that they are actually separated by a considerable distance, but that they are united because they both gravitate around each other. to the same mass that acts as its orbit, joining them irreversibly. However, there is also another type of double stars, which are the double opticsthat is, those that appear linked from Earth but, when examined closely through the telescope, it is discovered that such closeness was an illusion and that they are not actually connected.
In addition, in recent decades other types of double stars have been studied, which have received the name of non-visual binaries. In these cases, the double stars are not visible from Earth, so experts can only deduce their existence by indirect means. The constant improvement of the means of observing the sky is allowing the discovery of new binary double stars that were not previously visible and improving the study of existing ones, thus revealing more secrets about these intriguing stars.