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Chapter 18: Problem 2

Why is it more difficult to observe the life cycles of stars than the life cycles of planets or animals?

Short Answer

Expert verified
The observation of the life cycle of stars is more difficult than that of planets or animals mainly because of the extraordinarily long lifetime of stars and their great distances from Earth.

Step by step solution

01

Understand the Lifecycles

Firstly, understand what a life cycle means in the context of stars, planets, and animals. A life cycle refers to the series of changes that an organism or celestial body undergoes from the beginning of its existence until its demise.
02

Comparing Timeframes

Consider the timeframe of these different life cycles. The lifecycle of a star is enormously long, millions to billions of years. Contrastingly, the life cycle of animals and planets (viewed as geological activity) is much shorter.
03

Understand the Concept of Observability

The concept of 'observability' needs to be understood in this context. Observability refers to the easiness or difficulty in monitoring or sensing the changes throughout a life cycle.
04

Analyze the Difficulty of Observing Star Life Cycles

FBased on the science available, it can be reasoned that due to their long life cycles and great distances from Earth, it is more difficult to observe the life cycles of stars. Changes occurring in star life cycles are much slower and subtler than those in animal life cycles.
05

Final Understanding

From the above analysis, it can be concluded that long timeframes and great distances make it more challenging to observe the life cycles of stars in comparison to planets or animals.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

What is an evolutionary track? How can evolutionary tracks help us interpret the H-R diagram?

If an interstellar medium fills the space between the stars, how is that we are able to see the stars at all?

If you looked at the spectrum of a reflection nebula, would you see absorption lines, emission lines, or no lines? Explain your answer. As part of your explanation, describe how the spectrum demonstrates that the light was reflected from nearby stars.

Some science-fiction movies show stars suddenly becoming dramatically brighter when they are "born" (that is, when thermonuclear fusion reactions begin in their cores). Discuss whether this is a reasonable depiction.

Briefly describe four mechanisms that compress the interstellar medium and trigger star formation.
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