What Causes Nebulae to Form?

-- nikoli | December 19, 2020

Question:

I’m 11,and I have an intrest in astronomy, I’ve always wanted to know what causes a nebula to form?

-- nikoli

Answer:

There are actually several types of nebulae which are created by a variety of processes, including those associated with the places where stars form and die as supernovae.  Nebulae are clouds of gas and dust which are illuminated by nearby sources of energy like stars.  You can read a nice description of what nebulae are and what they look like on the NASA page What is a Nebula?

-- Jeff Mangum