Knowra Stellar feedback Stellar feedback Stellar feedback is the transfer of energy and matter from stars into surrounding gas. It can heat, move, compress, or disperse gas and thereby alter subsequent star formation.
Stellar wind : A stream of charged particles flowing from a star into its surroundings. Winds carry momentum and energy from massive stars into nearby gas before they explode.
Star formation : The process by which dense regions of gas collapse to form stars. Feedback can suppress new collapse by dispersing gas or promote it by compressing clouds.
Negative feedback : A process in which a system's response counteracts the change that initiated it. Gas removal and heating can reduce star formation, a common suppressive feedback outcome.
Subgrid model : A computational prescription for representing physical processes below a simulation's resolved scale. Galaxy simulations use these models to approximate unresolved stellar energy and momentum injection.
Photoionization : The removal of electrons from atoms or molecules by absorbed photons. Ultraviolet starlight ionizes and heats surrounding gas, creating expanding regions.
Interstellar medium : The gas, dust, and energetic particles occupying the space between stars in a galaxy. It is the material into which stellar feedback deposits energy and matter.
Positive feedback : A process in which a system's response amplifies the change that initiated it. Compressed gas around expanding shells can collapse and form stars, reversing the suppressive effect.
Initial mass function : The distribution of stellar masses at the birth of a population of stars. It sets how many massive, short-lived stars supply strong feedback per unit stellar mass.
Supernova : A stellar explosion that ejects matter and releases a large amount of energy. Supernovae inject energy, momentum, and newly synthesized elements into the interstellar medium.
Molecular cloud : A cold, dense cloud of interstellar gas in which molecules, especially molecular hydrogen, are abundant. Feedback from young stars can disrupt their natal clouds and limit further star formation.
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