Star cocoons and other nebulae nuggets
Stories from Physics
for 11-14
14-16
- A protostar is a body of gas that is compressed enough to be opaque but not hot enough to allow nuclear fusion to begin. As material flows into a protostar, a cloud of enveloping gas known as a cocoon nebula may form.
- The shapes of nebulae have attracted some curious names including the Waterfall Nebula, the Lobster Nebula, the Witch Head Nebula, the Red Square Nebula and the neighbouring Heart and Soul Nebulae. The Calabash or Rotten Egg Nebula is named for the high levels of sulphur found in its gases.
- The density of gas in nebulae is typically very low - one analogy suggests imagining the quantity of gas in a typical village hall expanded to the volume of the Earth.
References
Star cocoons and other nebulae nuggets
M. A. Seeds, D. Backman, Stars and Galaxies, Boston, MA, Cengage Learning, 2016, p. 228
S. Ross Taylor, Solar System Evolution: A New Perspective, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2001, p. 62
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, HH-222: The Waterfall Nebula, 24th October, 2011, NASA, Image Credit: T.A. Rector, & H. Schweiker https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap111024.html
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, The Calabash Nebula from Hubble, 15th February, 2017, NASA, Image credit: Judy Schmidt https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170215.html
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, The Lobster Nebula, 7th February, 2017, NASA, Picture Credit: ESO, VLT Survey Telescope, https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170207.html
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, The Witch Head Nebula, 30th October 2015, NASA, Picture Credit: J. Signorelli, https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap151030.html
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, MWC 922: The Red Square Nebula, 31st January, 2016, NASA, Picture Credit: P.Tuthill & J.Lloyd, https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160131.html
R. Nemirodd, & J. Bonnell, Astronomy Picture of the Day, Heart and Soul Nebulas, 16th November 2016, NASA, Picture Credit: D. Lindemann, https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap161116.html
P. Moore, & R. Ress, Patrick Moore’s Data Book of Astronomy, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2011, p. 350
R. Sahai, W. H. T. Vlemmings, P. J. Huggins, L. Å. Nyman, I. & Gonidakis, ALMA Observations of the Coldest Place in the Universe: The Boomerang Nebula. The Astrophysical Journal, vol. 777, no. 2, 2013, pp. 1-11
