Lesson 1: The dying sun

·

By Sir James Jeans

Q. How is it that a star seldom finds another star near it?

A. A star mostly makes its voyage in total loneliness. The average distance between stars is over a million miles. For these reasons, a star rarely finds another one near it and collides with it.

Q. What happened when, according to Sir James Jeans, a wandering star, wandering through space, came near the sun? OR What happened when a wandering star came nearer and nearer?

A. When a wandering star came near the sun, it raised tidal waves on the surface of the sun. It grew to form an unimaginably high mountain. When this star came nearer and nearer, the tidal pull became very powerful. This force tore the mountain into pieces. These pieces cooled down and later formed planets. They started revolving around the sun. Thus our solar system came into existence.

Q. What are planets and how did they come into existence?

A. Planets are cooled-down pieces of fires scattered through space. They came into existence as a result of the collision of a wandering star with the sun.

Q. Why is there no life on the stars? OR What, in your opinion, should be the conditions necessary for life? Do such conditions generally exist?

A. Water, air and a temperature at which substances can exist in a liquid state are necessary conditions for life. Such conditions generally do not exist. Thus, there is no life on stars other than the earth.

Q. Write a note on the beginning of life on earth.

A. When the earth gradually cooled down, life started in the form of simple organisms. They grew ever more and more complex.

Q. Why is the universe, of which our earth is a part, so frightening? Give as many reasons as you can.

A. The universe frightens us for several reasons. We do not understand the immense distances. We cannot imagine the stretches of time that are so great. We feel extreme loneliness. Additionally, there is the loneliness of our home in space.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *