Evaporating gaseous globule
Do you know what happens when you leave a glass of water outside in the hot sun all day? The water inside the glass starts to disappear, right? That's because something called "evaporation" is happening. When it's hot outside, some of the water in the glass turns into a gas - that's called "evaporating".
Well, in space, there are big clouds of gas and dust called molecular clouds. These clouds are very cold (like when you put water in the fridge) and so the gases inside them are usually in a solid or liquid state. But sometimes, something very interesting happens: a small part of the gas inside the cloud gets heated up for some reason. This could happen if a nearby star gets really hot and starts to give off lots of radiation.
When a small part of a molecular cloud starts to heat up, the gas inside it starts to turn into a gas just like the water in the hot sun. But because the cloud is still so cold, this gas - called an "evaporating gaseous globule" or EGG for short - is trapped inside the cold gas around it. Just like when you put a balloon inside a cardboard box, the EGG stays trapped inside the molecular cloud.
Over time, the EGG gets smaller and smaller as more and more of its gas turns into a gas. But eventually, the cloud of gas and dust around it starts to break down and the EGG is free to drift away on its own. Finally, it becomes a completely separate object, floating off into space - just like a balloon that has been let go. Cool, huh?
Well, in space, there are big clouds of gas and dust called molecular clouds. These clouds are very cold (like when you put water in the fridge) and so the gases inside them are usually in a solid or liquid state. But sometimes, something very interesting happens: a small part of the gas inside the cloud gets heated up for some reason. This could happen if a nearby star gets really hot and starts to give off lots of radiation.
When a small part of a molecular cloud starts to heat up, the gas inside it starts to turn into a gas just like the water in the hot sun. But because the cloud is still so cold, this gas - called an "evaporating gaseous globule" or EGG for short - is trapped inside the cold gas around it. Just like when you put a balloon inside a cardboard box, the EGG stays trapped inside the molecular cloud.
Over time, the EGG gets smaller and smaller as more and more of its gas turns into a gas. But eventually, the cloud of gas and dust around it starts to break down and the EGG is free to drift away on its own. Finally, it becomes a completely separate object, floating off into space - just like a balloon that has been let go. Cool, huh?