Brianna Susnak
Mini-Project #1
1. The six steps of the formation of the solar system are:
• Gravitational collapse—the protostellar cloud collapses into a rotating disk. This disk increases in temperature and rotation rate, due to the conservation of energy and angular momentum. The rotating cloud is flattened into a disk, and the materials in the disk move in a circular motion. The material in this disk forms planets that orbit in the same way that the material from which they are formed orbits. Metals and rocks condense the fastest, while hydrogen compounds and gases condense into ice or never condense at all.
• Condensation—the formation of solid or liquid particles from gas. Hydrogen and helium remain gases, but the remaining materials condense and are used to create planets. Each material condensates differently and at a different rate. Typically the rocks and metals that condense are found in the inner solar system, while the remaining materials …show more content…
Growing objects formed by accretion are called planetesimals. While small planetesimals come in a variety of shapes, large planetesimals are usually spherical due to the force of gravity.
• Nebular Capture—occurs outside of the frost line, where icy planetesimals become large enough to capture hydrogen and helium. This leads to the formation of the larger planets.
• Gas clearing by solar wind—the solar wind is a flow of charged particles ejected by the Sun in various directins. While it was stronger while the Sun was younger, it is now significantly weaker. The wind swept out most of the remaining gas.
• Massive bombardment—planetesimals remaining after the clearing of the solar nebula became comets and asteroids. Many of them impacted on objects within the solar system during the first few 100 million years, which led to the creation of
Mini-Project #1
1. The six steps of the formation of the solar system are:
• Gravitational collapse—the protostellar cloud collapses into a rotating disk. This disk increases in temperature and rotation rate, due to the conservation of energy and angular momentum. The rotating cloud is flattened into a disk, and the materials in the disk move in a circular motion. The material in this disk forms planets that orbit in the same way that the material from which they are formed orbits. Metals and rocks condense the fastest, while hydrogen compounds and gases condense into ice or never condense at all.
• Condensation—the formation of solid or liquid particles from gas. Hydrogen and helium remain gases, but the remaining materials condense and are used to create planets. Each material condensates differently and at a different rate. Typically the rocks and metals that condense are found in the inner solar system, while the remaining materials …show more content…
Growing objects formed by accretion are called planetesimals. While small planetesimals come in a variety of shapes, large planetesimals are usually spherical due to the force of gravity.
• Nebular Capture—occurs outside of the frost line, where icy planetesimals become large enough to capture hydrogen and helium. This leads to the formation of the larger planets.
• Gas clearing by solar wind—the solar wind is a flow of charged particles ejected by the Sun in various directins. While it was stronger while the Sun was younger, it is now significantly weaker. The wind swept out most of the remaining gas.
• Massive bombardment—planetesimals remaining after the clearing of the solar nebula became comets and asteroids. Many of them impacted on objects within the solar system during the first few 100 million years, which led to the creation of