Activity
In this activity, you'll explore the physical conditions that are necessary in a nebula to form new stars. To understand this
concept, you'll observe the effects of gas
properties on particles in a simulated nebula. You'll use the simulation called
Gas Properties to make your observations
and to answer questions. Acquaint yourself with the simulation by running
it a few times. When you are familiar with how it works
, run a simulation using these steps:
1. Open the simulation Gas Properties and click "Explore".
2. Click the green "+" next to the word "Particles" on the right of the screen. Use the arrows to place 100 light species
into the chamber.
3. In the box at the top right, select the "Collision Counter". In the "Wall Collisions" window on the left, click the gray and
green play button to count the number of collisions
. Keep the "Sample Period" at 10ps.
4. Observe the temperature and pressure in the chamber. Click the pause button (blue circle on the left, underneath
the chamber) if the movement of the particles becomes
too hard on your eyes..
Part A
Decrease the volume of the chamber by dragging the left side inward. What values changed when you decreased the
volume of the container?
