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Tech2 News Staff
Nov 23, 2018 9:05 PM IST
A new study by researchers at the Australian National University takes a closer look at a cosmic phenomenon that slows down the energy-intensive star formation process to pave the way for life in a galaxy.
The team investigated the process by which stars provide a counterpressure to gravity that slows the process of star formation. Dr. Roland Crocker, Principal Investigator, ANU School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, told university press.
"If star formation occurred quickly, all stars would be bound into massive clusters … where intense radiation and supernova explosions would likely sterilize all planetary systems, thus preventing the emergence of the life, "said Crocker.
"The conditions in these massive star clusters can even prevent the formation of planets."
The researchers found that the majority of the process is influenced by light in different forms of energy. Ultraviolet light and visible light from large newborn stars strike residual cosmic dust in the space surrounding a newly formed star.
The spiral galaxy M78, like many others that have been used to study the age of the universe, is an important source of radio waves. Image Courtesy: NASA / Hubble
The infrared light is also dispersed by this remaining cosmic dust, which energizes the air surrounding the newborn star and acts as a counterpressure to the gravitational force of the star.
"The phenomenon we studied occurs in galaxies and star clusters where a lot of dusty gas is relatively quickly forming a cluster of stars," said Crocker.
"In galaxies forming stars more slowly, like the Milky Way, other processes slow things down. The Milky Way trains on average two new stars every year. "
Astronomers agree that all galaxies in the universe form new stars in a continuous and regular way. The new study has established a mathematical limit on how quickly stars can form in a cloud of galaxies or gases. Backpressure and star formation capability in galaxies are among the feedback mechanisms that star systems must keep for the universe to remain alive and vibrant, according to Crocker.
"We are studying other ways that stars could introduce into their environment in order to slow the overall rate of star formation."
The study was Posted in the newspaper Monthly Notices from the Royal Astronomical Society.
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