How stars form

The “Pillars of Creation” are enormous clouds of gas and dust in the Eagle Nebula. They became famous through images from the Hubble Space Telescope. They consist mainly of hydrogen and contain dust that blocks visible light. New stars form inside them.

The Eagle Nebula is about 7,000 light-years away. That means we see it as it looked about 7,000 years ago. The famous pillars are about four to five light-years long.

Stars form in cold clouds of gas. Where enough gas gathers, gravity pulls in more and more matter. The cloud becomes denser and heats up inside. This forms a protostar, the precursor to a star. Even at this stage, it gives off heat and light.

When its core becomes hot and dense enough, hydrogen nuclei fuse to form helium. This process is called nuclear fusion. It provides the energy that allows a star to shine for a long time.

How long a star lives depends mainly on its mass. Very massive stars use up their fuel faster than low-mass stars. Our Sun is about 4.6 billion years old. In total, it can fuse hydrogen in its core for about ten billion years.

A rotating disk of gas and dust can form around a young star. Dust particles join together to form increasingly larger bodies. Planets can form from these. Some are made mainly of rock, while others contain a lot of gas.

If a forming celestial body gathers too little mass, it cannot fuse hydrogen continuously. A brown dwarf can then form.

Study sentences

The “Pillars of Creation” are located in __________.
They became famous through images taken by the __________ space telescope.
The columns are made of gas and __________.
The Eagle Nebula is approximately __________ light-years away.
The __________ keeps drawing in more and more matter.
The precursor to a star is called a __________.
In nuclear fusion, hydrogen nuclei combine to form __________.
Very massive stars use up their fuel __________ than low-mass stars.
__________ can form in a disk of gas and dust.
A celestial body that does not have enough mass can become a __________.