Question

Order the life-cycle of a star approximately the same size as our sun, a low-mass star, from its origin to its "death."

1.Protostar
2.Nebula
3.Main Sequence
4.White Dwarf
5.Planetary Nebula
6.Black Dwarf

Answer 1

The life cycle of a low-mass star involves the stages of protostar, nebula, main sequence, red giant, planetary nebula, white dwarf, and theoretically a black dwarf. Mass loss occurs during the red giant phase and the planetary nebula phase.

Step-by-step explanation:

The life cycle of a low-mass star, approximately the same size as our sun, goes through the following stages:

1. Protostar: This is the initial stage, where a cloud of gas and dust collapses under gravity to form a dense core.
2. Nebula: The protostar evolves into a nebula, which is a cloud of gas and dust.
3. Main Sequence: The nebula contracts and becomes a stable main-sequence star, where nuclear fusion occurs in its core.
4. Red Giant: As the star exhausts its hydrogen fuel, it expands into a red giant and begins to lose mass through stellar winds.
5. Planetary Nebula: After the red giant phase, the outer layers of the star are ejected, creating a planetary nebula.
6. White Dwarf: The core of the star collapses to form a white dwarf, which is a dense, hot object that eventually cools over billions of years.
7. Black Dwarf: In theory, a white dwarf that has cooled completely is called a black dwarf, but no black dwarfs have been observed yet since they require an extremely long time to form.

Mass loss occurs in the red giant phase and planetary nebula phase. In the red giant phase, stellar winds blow off the star's outer layers, and in the planetary nebula phase, the outer layers are ejected into space.