Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Some elements of the original nebular theory are echoed in modern theories of planetary formation, but most elements have been superseded. According to the nebular theory, stars form in massive and dense clouds of molecular hydrogen—giant molecular clouds (GMC). These clouds are gravitationally unstable, and matter coalesces within them to ...
A major difficulty was that, in this supposition, turbulent dissipation took place over the course of a single millennium, which did not give enough time for planets to form. The nebular hypothesis was first proposed in 1734 by Swedish scientist Emanuel Swedenborg [6] and later expanded upon by Prussian philosopher Immanuel Kant in 1755.
The nebular hypothesis says that the Solar System formed from the gravitational collapse of a fragment of a giant molecular cloud, [9] most likely at the edge of a Wolf-Rayet bubble. [10] The cloud was about 20 parsecs (65 light years) across, [9] while the fragments were roughly 1 parsec (three and a quarter light-years) across. [11]
It was composed of hydrogen and helium created shortly after the Big Bang 13.8 Ga (billion years ago) and heavier elements ejected by supernovae. About 4.5 Ga, the nebula began a contraction that may have been triggered by the shock wave from a nearby supernova. [23] A shock wave would have also made the nebula rotate.
The Andromeda Galaxy, for instance, was once referred to as the Andromeda Nebula (and spiral galaxies in general as "spiral nebulae") before the true nature of galaxies was confirmed in the early 20th century by Vesto Slipher, Edwin Hubble, and others. Edwin Hubble discovered that most nebulae are associated with stars and illuminated by starlight.
Analysis of such observations made by the Planck microwave space telescope in 2016 concluded that the first generation of stars may have formed from around 300 million years after the Big Bang. [69] Quasars provide some additional evidence of early structure formation. Their light shows evidence of elements such as carbon, magnesium, iron and ...
These impacts fragment carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen nuclei present. The process results in the light elements beryllium, boron, and lithium in the cosmos at much greater abundances than they are found within solar atmospheres. The quantities of the light elements 1 H and 4 He produced by spallation are negligible relative to their primordial ...
While the majority of Earth's surface is covered by oceans, those oceans make up just a small fraction of the mass of the planet. The mass of Earth's oceans is estimated to be 1.37 × 10 21 kg, which is 0.023% of the total mass of Earth, 6.0 × 10 24 kg.