Naked Science Forum

Non Life Sciences => Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology => Topic started by: tony6789 on 02/05/2006 14:19:10

Title: Burn out!
Post by: tony6789 on 02/05/2006 14:19:10

Is it true that the sun will really burn out?

- Big T

Title: Re: Burn out!
Post by: neilep on 02/05/2006 14:52:54

Hi Tony...Where have you been ?..we've all missed you.

Yep, it's true.....the sun is like a light bulb, it won't last forever.

Think of as a flame, which uses gas as the fuel. If you stop the gas the flame will go out as it has no more fuel.

The sun is a contained body and does not have an infinite supply of fuel...how could it ?...all it's fuel is contained within it...

Though, I wouldn't worry about it Tony, it won't happen for at least another 5 years !!..OOOPS !!..sorry...I meant Five Billion Years !!

This is the fate of all stars Tony. Some blow up as a Supernova , others like our sun will expand and then collapse over millions of years. It's an inevitable fact.

I am sure there must be lots of good links out there describing the process.



Men are the same as women, just inside out !

Title: Re: Burn out!
Post by: tony6789 on 04/05/2006 14:17:20

Soo cool that would be an awsome explosion does it happen all at once or gradually?

- Big T

Title: Re: Burn out!
Post by: neilep on 04/05/2006 15:05:00

I'm pretty sure it happens gradually (in the case of our sun anyway and similar sized suns...in space size DOES matter)...

...but a bigger sun will go Supernova an you don't really want to be close by when that happens !! [;)]...they are the biggest explosions in the whole cosmos....and that is BIG !!




Men are the same as women, just inside out !

Title: Re: Burn out!
Post by: harryneild on 04/05/2006 16:40:18

Another thing to note is that a bigger star will burn out more quickly despite there being more fuel, because the gravity and nuvlear reaction rate is much bigger. Is there any figures on this, like for example, if a star is 2 time bigger its life time is ? times shorter.

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"Knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly, or it vanishes." Peter F. Drucker

Title: Re: Burn out!
Post by: Soul Surfer on 05/05/2006 11:21:44

The earth will become uninhabitable well before the sun turns into a red giant and there are strong suggestions (following the Gaia principles of biological stabilisation)that it is getting pretty close to the limit of thermal runaway at the moment because the natural level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is so low it makes life difficult for plants.  That is an extra reason why manmade cabon dioxide incerases could be so serious.

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