The first stars form from metal-free gas
node
The earliest generation of stars condensed out of gas containing only hydrogen, helium and traces of lithium left by Big Bang nucleosynthesis. With no carbon, oxygen or dust to radiate heat away, that gas could not cool efficiently, and theory predicts the first stars were consequently far more massive than typical stars today. No individual first-generation star has ever been observed; the epoch is constrained indirectly, by the composition of the oldest surviving low-mass stars and by observations of the earliest galaxies. The date is a model-dependent bracket, not a measurement.
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Evidence · 1
Timeline
No dated observations are stored for this object. Atlas shows what was observed and when — it does not infer a history.
Connections · 3
- Giant molecular cloudconcerns
- Stellar nucleosynthesisconcerns
- Initial stellar massconcerns
Assembled narrative · 1
An assembled narrative is available for this object.
Observed changes · 0
No public Signals are attached to this object. Signals show what changed and when it was observed — never a direction or a rank.
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