When stars like our Sun die, they swell to become red giants and then eject gigantic clouds of gas and dust into space. However astronomers and scientists were not able to explain how exactly dying stars could blow away these clouds.
Now these astronomers have stated that chemical reactions during the formation of stardust can help solve this long-standing mystery.
Stars smaller than the sun and about eight times as massive die by swelling up into red giants and then shredding all their mass to shrink into very compact white dwarfs. There are two main kinds of red giants, some are carbon-rich and others are rich in oxygen.
Carbon rich stars release carbon particles such as soot and graphite. This black material absorbs rays from the dying stars and is propelled into space.
However oxygen-rich stars create large quantities of water vapor and silicates making them transparent. This material does not absorb light and should not be propelled. But in actual circumstances this happens. This means that there is some phenomenon that shoots this material into space but the phenomenon was not understood by the researchers.
This mystery began five years ago and reached a head last when the calculations of two independent teams of scientists showed that it was impossible for oxygen-rich stars to propel their mass into space.
But now researchers have made an innovative research that has provided a possible solution to the problem. They have stated that some of the carbon in the oxygen-rich stars could help force the outer layers of stars into space. They also believe that that shock waves from the pulsations of dying stars could make carbon in oxygen rich stars form a black blanket.
This theory is in accordance with all the computer models and should solve the theory behind stardust.
However these researchers have also stated that the calculations needed to prove the scenario will be hard to do and still there is a lot of work left for them if they have to deliver a new research to provide an answer to the stardust mystery.
Via: MSNBC
