What is the sole energy source powering an object identified as a protostar?
Answer
Heat generated by continued gravitational contraction
A protostar derives its energy entirely from the heat generated as gravitational contraction converts potential energy into thermal energy, a process known as the Kelvin-Helmholtz mechanism.
Related Questions
What is the approximate percentage of hydrogen found in the raw ingredients of molecular clouds?What is the typical temperature range for molecular clouds, the sites of star birth?What fundamental force must gain the upper hand to initiate the gravitational collapse of a gas region?What is the theoretical mass threshold that a region must exceed to begin collapsing irrevocably?Which cosmic event can provide the necessary compression, or 'kick,' to initiate gravitational collapse in a molecular cloud?As a cloud core shrinks, what physical principle causes the contracting mass to flatten into a disk shape?What is the sole energy source powering an object identified as a protostar?What mechanism allows a forming star system to shed excess angular momentum that might otherwise halt collapse?What condition distinguishes a brown dwarf from a true star that undergoes sustained fusion?What establishes the stability of a main-sequence star, marking the end of its collapse phase?