The stars are born, live, and die from "summary" of Cosmos by Carl Sagan
In the vastness of the cosmos, stars play a central role in shaping the universe as we know it. These celestial bodies are not static entities but rather dynamic beings that go through a life cycle much like living organisms on Earth. They are born from vast clouds of gas and dust, where gravitational forces pull these materials together until the pressure and temperature are high enough for nuclear fusion to ignite.
As a star begins its life, it radiates energy into space, illuminating the darkness that surrounds it. For billions of years, stars burn brightly, converting hydrogen into helium through the process of fusion. This is the source of their energy, the fuel that keeps them shining in the night sky. Some stars, like our own Sun, will continue to burn steadily for billions of years, providing warmth and light to the planets that orbit them.
However, all stars must eventually face their demise. As they exhaust their fuel supply, they undergo drastic changes that can lead to their destruction. Some stars will expand into red giants, swallowing up nearby planets in their fiery embrace. Others will collapse into dense white dwarfs, their outer layers blown away into space. The most massive stars will end their lives in a violent explosion known as a supernova, scattering their remains across the cosmos.
In the aftermath of this cosmic event, new stars are born from the remnants of their predecessors, continuing the cycle of birth, life, and death in the universe. These newborn stars will go on to create new solar systems, new planets, and perhaps even new forms of life. And so, the story of the stars is one of constant renewal and transformation, a never-ending dance of creation and destruction that shapes the very fabric of the cosmos.
