Astronomy › Section N · Gas and dust between the stars › Topic N.4
The life cycle of cosmic material
Gas becomes stars, stars return enriched gas and dust, and that material builds new stars and planets. This cycle explains where the carbon, oxygen and iron in your body came from, and it shapes the patch of space the Sun travels through today.
In this topic
- A galaxy that recycles
- One parcel's journey
- Where the gas is
- The baryon cycle
- Worked example: how long would the gas last?
- Stars make the heavy elements
- Worked example: enriching a cloud
- Dust has a life cycle too
- From clouds to planets
- The Sun's neighbourhood
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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