Exam 15: Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium

The figures below show the spectrum of a star, along with five other spectra labeled A through E. Which one of the labeled spectra shows what the spectrum of that star would look like if it were viewed through a significant amount of interstellar dust?

Sitting in a 100°F hot tub feels much hotter than standing outside on a 100°F day. This analogy illustrates why:

Which of the following is responsible for heating the bulk of the very hot intercloud gas?

When looking at the space between stars, what might you see?

Why do stars form most often within molecular clouds?

How are Herbig-Haro objects related to T Tauri stars?

If you wanted to study regions where star formation is currently happening you could use:

The source of energy for a contracting protostar comes from:

The dust in the interstellar medium comes primarily from the stellar winds of main-sequence stars.