The Life of a Star

By Emma S., Emily, and Brittany P.

Gas and dust particles Gravitational pressure builds http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://

www.airynothing.com/high_energy_tutorial/
are pulled together in a up, creates a new star, and basic_astro/images/
Nebula (a cloud of fusion begins, with a high H_He_C_layers.gif&imgrefurl=http://
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Helium, Hydrogen, dust pressure helium core and basic_astro/
and plasma) creating a Hydrogen outer layer. life_cycle02.html&usg=__gRhzB0R8JFRBM-4bVp
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protostar (a star before =4&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=JreUlzc6I22ndM:&tbnh=1
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fusion begins) %2Bcore%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client
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The outer layers lose a lot of mass to

http://seds.org/MESSIER/Pics/Jpg/m20hst.jpg
the atmosphere during the Red
Giant phase. In medium/massive
The fusion continues until sized stars, (like the sun) The core is
it burns up all of the so hot that it goes from Helium to
hydrogen in the core, and Carbon. For all stars after the red
the thin layer between the Giant phase, the star shrinks and
outer layer and the core becomes the same size as before.
expand creating a red Then the star goes into Planetary
giant. Nebula, which is where all mass that
is not in the core is thrown outward
off the star, leaving the core, known
as a white dwarf.
http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~afrank/A105/LectureX/FG20_003.GIF http://www.chiro.org/LINKS/WALLPAPER/AQUILA_PLANETARY_NEBULAE.JPG

If the star is not too massive, the white dwarf

http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/2008/10/081001130010-large.jpg
will eventually die. But, if the star is Massive, it
will not lose enough mass to become a white
dwarf. The stars outer layers will eventually
collapse inward, toward the core. The core will
become an extremely dense neutron star,
formed by pressure on the protons and
electrons, and then causing the mass that is
collapsing inward to explode out, creating
something known as a supernova. If the mass
falling inward is too strong, the neutron star
will not be able to bounce the fall mass back
out. This will end up creating a black hole. http://www.soton.ac.uk/maths/img/research/applied/supermassive_black_hole.jpg