- Gravitational-Collapse-0.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-0.mp4
- Gravitational-Collapse-Alt-Reggae.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-Alt-Reggae.mp4
- Gravitational-Collapse-I.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-I.mp4
- Gravitational-Collapse-II.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-II.mp4
- Gravitational-Collapse-III.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-III.mp4
- Gravitational-Collapse-Interlude.mp3
- Gravitational-Collapse-electric-intro.mp3
[Intro]
Our baby started as a molecular cloud
Then, Bang! She came about loud
[Verse 1]
More than four (maybe more)
Billion years ago
Black as night (not a glow)
Not sure what to look for….
[Bridge]
Time lapse
Gravitational collapse
The relevance
Of a disturbance
[Chorus]
Star light (star bright)
You are my sunshine
Lighting up the night
Align me (with time)
Let me see the rays
(Let me count the days)
[Verse 2]
Protostar (there you are)
Fusion ignition
Recognition ambition
Stellar winds blow (there you go)
[Bridge]
Time lapse
Gravitational collapse
The relevance
Of a disturbance
[Chorus]
Star light (star bright)
You are my sunshine
Lighting up the night
Align me (with time)
Let me see the rays
(Let me count the days)
[Bridge]
Time lapse
Gravitational collapse
The relevance
Of a disturbance
[Chorus]
Star light (star bright)
You are my sunshine
Lighting up the night
Align me (with time)
Let me see the rays
(Let me count the days)
[Outro]
Our baby started as a molecular cloud
Then, Bang! She came about loud
A SCIENCE NOTE
The Sun was created through a process that began around 4.6 billion years ago in a vast region of space filled with gas and dust called a molecular cloud. Here’s a breakdown of how it formed:
1. Gravitational Collapse
- A disturbance—possibly from a nearby supernova—caused parts of the molecular cloud to become unstable and start collapsing under their own gravity.
- As the gas and dust in one region collapsed, it formed a dense core, which would eventually become the Sun.
2. Formation of a Protostar
- As the collapsing material condensed, it began to heat up due to gravitational compression.
- A spinning, glowing protostar formed at the center, surrounded by a protoplanetary disk of gas and dust.
- The temperature and pressure in the protostar continued to rise as more material fell into it.
3. Nuclear Fusion Ignition
- When the core of the protostar reached a temperature of about 10 million Kelvin, hydrogen nuclei began to fuse into helium, initiating nuclear fusion.
- This release of energy balanced the inward pull of gravity, stabilizing the young star.
4. Clearing the Surrounding Material
- The intense radiation and stellar winds from the newly formed Sun blew away much of the remaining gas and dust in the surrounding disk.
- What was left in the disk eventually formed the planets, moons, asteroids, and other objects in the solar system.
5. The Sun as a Main-Sequence Star
- Once nuclear fusion became the dominant source of energy, the Sun entered the main sequence phase, where it remains today.
- In this stage, the Sun converts hydrogen to helium in its core, producing the energy that lights and heats the solar system.
Summary
The Sun was created from the gravitational collapse of a dense region within a molecular cloud. Over millions of years, it grew into a protostar and eventually became a stable main-sequence star through nuclear fusion. This process also shaped the rest of the solar system, including the Earth.