2006-06-07 14:33:41 · 8 answers · asked by mango 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
brown dwarfs certainly exist, but they do not have enough matter, and therefore not enough gravity, to start nuclear fusion in their core.
2006-06-07 14:42:08 · update #1
It is possible that the class of giant gas planets might merge into brown dwarfs at the upper end of the scale. However, a brown dwarf, while it does not have enough internal pressure to fuse hydrogen into helium, can fuse deuterium. There's not much deuterium, so they don't burn very brightly or for very long, but this brief burst of fusion power makes them stars of a sort.
Brown dwarfs range in size from about .013 solar mass (~13x the mass of Jupiter) to .08 solar mass. Smaller bodies might be planets, slightly larger bodies are red dwarf stars.
2006-06-07 17:12:30 · answer #1 · answered by injanier 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
May I explain, brown dwarfs are stars between Jupiter's and our sun's size.
They are brown because they were not hot enough to start nuclear fusion and they are quite literally balls of gas.
The stars are in the same line as red dwarfs. Red dwarfs are the versions that had just enough heat to start nuclear fusion than brown dwrfs although some red dwarfs used to be brown dwarfs.
They only usually take on protium, Deuterium and Tritium Hydrogen isotype fusion reactions if they ignite.
Brown dwarfs look like large Jupiters.
Yet people say Jupiter is a brown planet to become a star.
2006-06-09 11:26:22 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Recently two new stellar classes have been proposed for classifying brown dwarves. These classifications fit into the standard MKS stellar classification system well, so I would not call these planets. Some brown dwarfs do sustain a low rate of deuterium fusion.
2006-06-07 21:43:53 · answer #3 · answered by Mr. Quark 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Brown dwarfs are a variation of star. As such they consist of a different molecular composition than planets, which might be made of rock and cannot create core fusion.
2006-06-07 21:39:13 · answer #4 · answered by Allistair Fraser 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
nope brown dwarfs dont exist in outer space black dwarfs and white dwarfs are 2 stages of a stars life though.
2006-06-07 21:36:15 · answer #5 · answered by Gangsta Penguin 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
brown dwarfs are a product of uranus
2006-06-09 18:24:53 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
No they are stars
2006-06-07 21:35:46 · answer #7 · answered by mikeszcz2003 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they are stars, the sight below explains it pretty well.
2006-06-07 22:22:20 · answer #8 · answered by Nomo 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋