So, I love stars. First and foremost, this is how they are born.
- A cloud of gas collapses under its own weight (cloud composed of hydrogen and helium as well as other heavier elements formed in supernovae explosions)
- As the cloud increases in size, so does its spin
- A dense object forms at its core
- The collapse of the cloud heats the hydrogen, helium and other heavy elements
- If the density and temperature are high enough at the centre of the cloud- thermonuclear burning/fusion will begin
Waaaah-laaaah, the star is now shining!
But like all things, nothing lasts forever and eventually the star will burn out. Generally, stars with greater core mass will burn out quicker (when I say quicker, this is in space years which is still in the millions) due to greater energy fuel demands. When this happens, the core of the star collapses in on itself creating a massive supernova explosion. In this brief moment, the death of the star (if large enough) can destroy its entire galaxy.
Ponder on that.
What is essential for life on earth? Oxygen.
How do we get oxygen? Trees.
How do trees make oxygen? Photosynthesis; the process of turning sunlight into the fundamental energy and life sources; oxygen and glucose (sugar).
Our sun is the life star of our galaxy and one day it too will burn out. But not in the way that most stars do. Our sun is relatively small compared to other stars so a supernovae explosion would not occur. However, the sun over a great span of time will gradually get brighter and brighter and so, our Earth will get hotter and hotter until our oceans boil and life on earth becomes unsustainable for most creatures on Earth (aside from some prokaryotic organisms that thrive off such environments). It’s okay, put your xanny down – this won’t happen for another 500 million years.
Even after that the sun in all its fiery madness will still exist but eventually it too will die in an expected 5 billion years.
This is when Earth and all its microscopic survivors will be truly fucked. The sun will aggregate into a giant ‘Red Star’ and swallow the Earth whole. It will cool down and glow red for a few million years before it slowly vanishes and is swept away into the infinite universe, leaving behind only its core.
Pictured: Red Star
The remaining core is a tiny dwarf star and will be the last reminder of what was our beautiful galaxy.
Never doubt the importance of space science and travel because one day (although, far into the future) it will be the key to our species, and the rest of Earth’s inhabitants, survival.
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