What are Stars?
Stars are giant balls of gas in space. The stars are very hot! They can be up to 800,000 degrees fahrenheit! Our own Sun is also a star. It supplies us with light and heat.
How do Stars Get So Hot?
This is how stars get very hot. A star is filled with gases called Hydrogen and Helium. The star has a lot of gravity, so the star smashes the Hydrogen molecules together to create Helium! The molecules in the Hydrogen actually fuse together to make a new gas called Helium. This process is how the star radiates out heat, light, and charged particles.
Test It Out!!! An Activity!
Here is a demonstration that YOU can do show the Hydrogen fusing together to make Helium!
Materials
a regular piece of paper (any size or color)
a very strong hand
Directions: Take the piece of paper and crumple it as much as you can. Make sure there are NO gaps. Imaging that the paper is the Hydrogen and your hand is the star’s gravity. Imagine the paper molecules or Hydrogen fusing together to for a new compound or thing!