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Chapter 8: Problem 9

What was the protosun? What caused it to shine? Into what did it evolve?

Short Answer

Expert verified
The protosun is the first stage of a star when a nebula of interstellar materials starts collapsing and accumulating mass. It shines due to the increased heat and pressure from the gravitational compression of these materials at the core. It evolves into a main-sequence star when the heat and pressure at the core become sufficient to initiate nuclear fusion. In our Solar System, the protosun evolved into the Sun as we know it today.

Step by step solution

01

- Understanding the protosun

The protosun is the initial stage of a star, specifically the sun in our solar system. This stage occurs when a collapsing nebula of interstellar gas, dust, and other materials begins to accumulate mass and gravitational pull at the core of a new stellar system. The protosun, being in the earliest stage of the stellar evolution process, does not yet have the energy or heat to initiate nuclear fusion, which defines a true sun or star.
02

- What caused the protosun to shine

Though the protosun does not undergo nuclear fusion that characterizes a star, it does however start to produce heat and light from the gravitational forces. As the materials of the collapsing nebula compresses under its own gravitational pull at the core, the heat and pressure therein increase. This heat and pressure are enough to cause the protosun to shine, albeit not as bright as a star.
03

- Evolution of the protosun

The protosun continues to accumulate mass from the surrounding nebula. Eventually, the heat and pressure at the core become sufficient to initiate hydrogen burning, marking the onset of nuclear fusion. This phase is known as the main-sequence star phase, and the star will spend most of its lifetime in this phase. Specifically for our solar system, the protosun evolved into the sun we know today, a main-sequence star that has been supporting life on Earth.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

What is a planetesimal? How did planetesimals give rise to the terrestrial planets?

Because of the presence of Jupiter, the Sun moves in a small orbit of radius \(742,000 \mathrm{~km}\) with a period of \(11.86\) years. (a) Calculate the Sun's orbital speed in meters per second. (b) An astronomer on a hypothetical planet orbiting the star Vega, 25 light- years from the Sun, wants to use the astrometric method to search for planets orbiting the Sun. What would be the angular diameter of the Sun's orbit as seen by this alien astronomer? Would the Sun's motion be discernible if the alien astronomer could measure positions to an accuracy of \(0.001\) arcsec? (c) Repeat part (b), but now let the astronomer be located on a hypothetical planet in the Pleiades star cluster, 360 light-years from the Sun. Would the Sun's motion be discernible to this astronomer?

What is the nebular hypothesis? Why is this hypothesis accepted?

If hydrogen and helium account for \(98 \%\) of the mass of all the atoms in the universe, why aren't the Earth and Moon composed primarily of these two gases?

Summarize the differences between the planets of our solar system and those found orbiting other stars.
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